Error 2: Matrixmon
by Nonamenonamenonameplease
Summary: As they say, a hero's work is never done. Two more Chosen Children have their own mission to fulfill, and they could sure use the main group's help. Takumi.
1. Chapter 1

Note: My first (and only) Season 4 story. For anyone who's read More Tamers To Boot, you'll definitely recognize the made-up Digimon appearing later on.

Time certainly passed by quicker in the Digital World than in the Real World. Takuya, Kouji, Izumi, Junpei, Tomoki, Kouichi, and the quartet whom Ophanimon charged Angemon to accompany wouldn't learn until near the end of the main sextet's mission. Momentarily returning home with help from a Dark Trailmon didn't count since it and the goggle boy also traveled back in time a bit. Periodical differences came with good news as well as bad news. On the plus side, years' worth of time heralded the return of the three Great Angels to authority. Hardly anybody remembered incidents of Cherubimon's revolt, his Hybrid servants making bad names for themselves, the Royal Knights' acts of continuing the data plunders, or any possible damage left behind from Lucemon's utmost defeat. Bokomon and Neemon managed finding new lives for themselves at the Fire Terminal at the former's insistence for extra inspiration of keeping alive memories of the kids. The latter always comforted his friend from regretting not being able to visit their world, although he often exhibited similar desires. All in all, everything seemed average to a fault.

On the minus side, however, those timely differences didn't come without yet another threat. Whoever or whatever it was, it needed not corrupt any of the angels. The Legendary Warriors weren't used to living common lives (including Ranamon's own life as a celebrity) and so eventually reverted back to their figurine forms. But unlike past menaces who usually made their presence well-known, this new one made advances slower than Seraphimon, Ophanimon, or Cherubimon realized the trouble ahead. Still more time would pass by before the right human individuals even caught a glimpse.

"Got your ticket, deary?" Mrs. Orimoto asked her daughter.

"Sure do!" Izumi answered, holding it up. The port was plumb full that morning of people going on vacation during the Spring Break of various schools throughout the surrounding urban area and neighboring settlements. Seeing this large a crowd made the Orimoto family wonder if they'd be fortunate enough to make it. Of course, Izumi also had other thoughts on her mind.

Ever since their adventures in the Digital World ended, she and the guys used their newfound maturation to improve their lives in the Real World. Family relations skyrocketed, and each child gained more new friends. No matter what school they attended or the grade, nothing stopped the six from socializing every once in a while. Blissfully unaware of everything happening in the next world, Izumi found herself facing a new dilemma she could bury no longer: She was in love with Takuya.

"Izumi?" Mr. Orimoto spoke, breaking the girl out of her trance, "We must get going."

"Er, coming!" Izumi really didn't like being interrupted. The time after boarding the ship was history. Hours passed on by before Japan disappeared from sight. Reaching the given room, going through instructional emergency procedures, and leaving the mainland felt utterly short-lasting. Little else stirred except for the usual ocean bustle: waves crashing, birds flying about, children splashing in pools, etc. Maybe an exploration around the ship defied the effects of time, as Izumi wasn't ready for anything more except maybe lunch.

Come early afternoon, the blond stood at a quieter back deck to recollect her thoughts. It always either somehow slipped her mind whenever they all resorted to Takuya, or someone interrupted. Whatever the case, Izumi knew she must make the goggle-wearing leader hers.

And why not? What reason existed that Izumi shouldn't feel the way she did? Unlike other boys, this one actually put her in a trance. He exuded a firm yet sunny disposition one just had to admire. She wouldn't've admitted it out loud in times past, but the girl even admired his heart of gold drawing from his concern for Tomoki's safety in the Digital World. Various memories of Takuya sprang to Izumi's mind.

_Flashback_

Izumi and Takuya had a fair share of quarrels when the group first came together. She fell in love with him the day they first looked eye to eye but couldn't properly express it just yet. Defeating Cerberumon as Agunimon after location the Human Spirit of Fire, Takuya certainly knew how to make quite a first impression. And no matter what the conflict between them both, Izumi almost always kept him the highest on her list of priorities (could he have done the same?). But two memories stuck out the best: their argument in the forest surrounding the Fire Terminal, and locating some key in Ophanimon's castle.

Right after Cerberumon's rampage, Junpei and Tomoki went off missing in hopes of going back home. Although concerns rang high especially for the younger boy, Izumi couldn't help teasing Takuya during the search. "He's only in 3rd grade," Takuya stated, his head hanging low, "I'll definitely bring him back."

Izumi giggled. "What kind of man are you trying to be?"

"I'm in 5th grade! I can be a man."

"Eh? Then we're the same. I don't want that."

"Huh?"

"I thought you were younger."

"I'm almost 11 years old!"

"When will that be?"

"August."

"Then I am the older lady. Mine's in May. I'm three months older than you."

"Doesn't matter," Takuya growled, then spotting Tomoki's D-Tector. "Th-...this is..." He picked it up.

"It looks like Tomoki's!" But that's also when Izumi grabbed onto Takuya as they both plunged into a hidden pit. If not for the pile of dead leaves at the bottom, both may as well have died from broken necks or backs. Neither prevented blushes creeping on their cheeks as she continued embracing him. "What are you doing? ...Huh? No!" She started smacking him. "Get away!"

"What was that for? You were the one grabbing on to me!"

A fiercer blush accompanied a mouth full of gritted teeth. "You don't have to call me omae! Orimoto Izumi is a perfectly cute name!"

Takuya sighed; not that he did call her 'omae'. "You're the only one who thinks it's cute."

"Isn't it okay for you to use 'kimi'? Anyhow, let's look for the others."

Minor things as that continually occurred even after the group acquired their Beast Spirits, but both preteens actually got along better on down the line. Izumi also recalled the night she and Takuya searched the library basement of Ophanimon's castle for a key to protect the entire place from being scanned by the Royal Knights. Others might've considered the conversation major evidence of these two turning their friendship into something more had anyone else been present to listen. It started shortly after Takuya instigated a book collapse after pulling one out of place. "We've really had to fight hard...up until now."

"It wasn't just fighting. I also got to meet you and the others, Takuya. And all the different Digimon. There were lots of happy times and fun times, too. When I go back to the human world, I'll have lots of friends. Since coming to the Digital World, I understand more about myself and about other people's feelings. I like myself now that I've become a Digimon."

"I also like the person you are now..."

"Eh?"

Izumi blushed as she looked back at Takuya. Realizing what he said, the goggle boy quickly provided a retraction. "Uh…no! Uh..." Still, the only girl on the team could've sworn she caught a blush on his face as they packed up books.

"Takuya!" she exclaimed, still blushing. Alarm accompanied the sudden eerie silence until Izumi turned around and found her investigation partner snooze away. Seeing him sleep like a baby conjured yet another smile. "Hey...Oh well."

_End Flashback_

She giggled at the first memory before realizing that the object of her affections might not find it as amusing. On the other hand, the second memory complicated things further. Blushes and whatnot only told so much. Was Takuya just like Izumi back then, not yet ready to unleash the same hidden feelings? Or did he mean what he said despite stuttering? And what of Junpei? The oldest kid in the bunch indubitably made his own supposed feelings for her painfully obvious, but nobody took him seriously. He gave nice enough gestures, but Izumi felt Takuya was more up her alley. She never before met a boy embodying such hefty qualities of life. But if her second assumption held out, maybe that unwritten rule not allowing them to think about these things until age 13 burned brighter than BurningGreymon's Wildfire Tsunami. Takuya might even run for the hills, so to speak, if Izumi mentioned it. Of course, unless she found him on the ship, she'd only know anything either through a phone call or after the vacation.

Coincidence upon coincidence, after entering the main hallway below deck, her green eyes spotted something interesting. Izumi walked a bit closer and down a flight of stairs before she caught sight of the appropriate familiar faces. Kouji, Junpei, and Kouichi appeared to be bogging on Takuya, but why exactly would take further analysis. Fortunately, the room became crowded enough for the girl to sneak around and hide in the lounge ahead of which the boys stood. Their following conversation proved even more interesting. "Go for it," Junpei insisted.

"No," Takuya refused.

"You know you want to."

"No, I don't."

"Takuya, why don't you quit being so stubborn and ask her out?" Kouji put in, "You can't hide it anymore. Everyone already knows how you feel about Izumi." Back behind the wall, the mentioned individual blushed as she put a hand over her mouth.

"Because she'll either think I'm weird, laugh at me, or…"

"Come on," Kouichi interrupted, "Nobody's gonna make fun of anybody. You're not thinking positive."

"…and besides, she's probably not even on this boat."

"Oh, yes, she is," Kouji countered, "I saw her standing out on the back decks minutes ago."

"You see?" Junpei encouraged, "You'll be able to tell Izumi after all. Some vacation, wouldn'tcha say?"

"This coming from the guy who wasted his supply of magic and candy just to get her to notice?" Takuya retorted, giving an irked look, "Why're you so bent on giving encouragement instead of demanding it?"

"That was back in the day; I've long since gotten over it. And Takuya, ever since we fixed the Digital World, I'll have you know my life's been more than just chocolate and magic tricks. Besides, I think Izumi's more your match."

"Enough talk," Kouji concluded, "You've delayed long enough. Better go catch her before she wanders off."

Ignoring the snooping faces, Izumi instantly saved them all the trouble by stepping out into the open as if she heard nothing. Since the room had multiple entrances, high chances existed that they wouldn't see through her façade. Kouji saw me the whole time and I didn't see them? Izumi thought, How could that have happened? "Hello, guys. Never expected to meet you on the ship."

"Oh, hey," Kouichi greeted, "Likewise."

Kouji pushed Takuya up close, but not too close. "Right. Anyways, now that you're here, Takuya has something he wants to say to you." He and the other two then walked away and hid behind some huge potted plants. Brunette and blond stared straight in each others' eyes, neither knowing what to say first. From what she heard, Izumi knew Takuya felt just as nervous confronting her like this. Whereas the trio had a good point that these two couldn't keep their feelings bottled up forever, that still gave them no right to pressure the pair. This just didn't feel like the right time; they needed even more privacy. Takuya and Izumi looked back at the three boys, who waved insistently at the former.

"Um…Izumi?"

"Takuya?"

"Errrr…" the two stammered. The three would've rolled their eyes playfully that Izumi did feel the same for Takuya if not for interruption.

"Hey, Takuya!" came another familiar voice, "Izumi!" Even if it was only Tomoki, the other three older boys smacked their foreheads in annoyance. Did the young child have miserable timing! On the other hand, the soon-to-be couple knew they'd require more time anyhow and so tolerated his interruption. "You're on the ship, too?"

"Surely," Takuya replied.

"I sure hope you got a good explanation for this, kiddo," Junpei spoke, the trio rejoining everyone else.

"Junpei! Kouji! Kouichi!"

"Looks like we all made it," Izumi chimed.

"Sure did," Kouichi explained, "Now, what's the idea interrupting Izumi and Takuya from their conversation?"

"Sorry about that. But you just gotta check this out!"

"Check what out?" Takuya asked.

"C'mon, I'll show you!" Tomoki immediately bolted to the other side of the room with Takuya and Izumi hot on his trail. The others sighed, shrugged, and joined the procession. They'd no choice but to delay their plan.

"This could be a long day," Kouji commented.

"Tell me about it," Junpei agreed. Still, when they all reached the next room, even the scheming pair submitted to shock and intrigue. From the looks of things, this one appeared as a more advanced arcade than that next to the theatre. No decade-old metal boxes with joysticks, buttons, and two-dimensional graphics could be found in here. Only complex wiring and five pod-like chairs existed within. The genius/es behind all of this must've been on a snack break or other, because the quintet found nobody else besides them standing around.

"Isn't this awesome?" Tomoki said, "This room looks like it goes 100 years into the future!"

"A century, if you will," Kouichi said, "So who's in charge around here?"

"That would be me," came an adult female voice from behind. Everyone turned around and found a 21-year old who appeared behind the times: tie-dye t-shirt with a yellow smiley face; black skirt; white sandals; brown sunglasses; and spiky beige hair running down her shoulders. Her expression told all that she couldn't wait for visitors. "Just call me Ding."

"Ding?" Izumi wondered, "What kind of a name is that?"

"Aw, enough about me." Ding led the procession into the center of the room. "You really like my accomplishment?"

"Accomplishment?" Junpei said, "You designed all this amazing stuff?"

"Well, okay, I didn't build the machines or install the circuitry. It took me a few years to perfect my latest virtual reality game; I call it 'Matrix Drive'. Do you happen to be gamers by chance?"

"Surely," Kouji answered, "These pods look like some new kind of bathtub or other."

"My associates modeled them after the cryogenic tubes used in hospitals, with all original hardware on the inside. Of course, these are only prototypes."

"How're they different?" Takuya asked.

"Ships nowadays have carried along mostly the kind of gaming popular back in the 1980s. But virtual reality has long since begun traveling the seas. Though, my game isn't set up to use controllers of any sort, and the terminal through which players enter another world is created by the computer." Ding's cheery attitude momentarily faltered before Tomoki volunteered first. "Problem is, I can't find the proper test subjects for it."

"Look no further. You've just hired a complete cast." The older kids nodded in agreement. Who knows, it sure sounded interesting enough.

"Yeah," Izumi agreed, "It's not every day we meet any female game designers."

"Wonderful!" Ding exclaimed, "I promise you won't be disappointed!" The adult readied each child into place. Naturally, she continued her quick overview before the gaming commenced. "Now, as I already said, a world's been constructed. You'll play the game as you normally would. By allowing players to enter this world, it can support multiple players at the same time."

"So it's a network game," Kouichi translated.

"Correcto-mundo! Not many ships carry network games now, but changes are always happening. Anyways, the story goes that in this fantasy world, there's an empire sort of dealing with a series of isolated revolts. You must join the world to complete the game, and you'll automatically participate as different characters. It's currently set for a few hours, so I'll record your play data. Alright, enough o' my mumbo-jumbo. Everyone ready?"

"You bet!" the kids answered in unison.

"And, let 'er rip!" Ding shut the pods and pressed the necessary buttons. Each child felt like he or she went through a trance as the game sprung alive. Huge yellow letters bent at crazy angles spelled out the game's title before it presented a brief history of the virtual world. The following sentences filled all screens:

**Year 3235 of the Matrix Empire**

**The continent of Simitar is not as peaceful as it appears. Since the fifth monarch Matrix ascended to the throne, emotionlessness spread throughout the land. No one complains or even realizes how suppressed they really are because Her Majesty's charms have eradicated all emotions.**

**Matrix prefers not to show herself publicly, and nobody knows where she resides. Besides the forced conversion, the soldiers of similar background who handle any and all possible conflicts are the only other proof of her existence. However, there are still those who yet exist to fight the oppressive regime. At the capital city of…**

"Yes?" Takuya said, "What's the capital city's name?" Instead of continuing the story, a peach-colored flash suddenly blinded the children. Black and white voids ran through their heads in an intermingling mess. Familiar feelings crashed through like waves on a beach. Only gray existed in everyone's sight until they all woke up and found themselves lying on silver ground.

"Takuya," Kouji's voice echoed, "Takuya…Takuya…wake up…"

"Mmm…" The goggle boy stood up straight and shook his head. Even though they'd only entered minutes ago, it seemed like hours. "Ugh…what happened?"

"You got me," Izumi said, "I'm guessing the game wasn't finished giving the history lesson. An overload, maybe?"

"Hope not," Tomoki put in, "Ding wouldn't really let us play if that were true, right?"

"I couldn't say for sure," Junpei said, inspecting the scenery, "Y'know, this place reminds me of Steel Town, except for the monochrome. She could've made it more colorful, though."

"Well, you remember what the writing told us," Kouichi reminded, "This Matrix person took away everyone's emotions, so maybe she did the same with the colors also."

"Bokomon?" Takuya said, "Neemon?" All faces turned towards the same direction the goggle-wearing leader faced. Yes indeed, the bookkeeper-goofball duo appeared doing nothing more than walking straight ahead to who knows what. But they both halted and faced the same humans they accompanied a long time ago. Neither did anything more than staring back with blank facial expressions. In fact, neither bothered stopping the kids from running their hands on them or other.

"Wow!" Tomoki declared, "One unexpected meeting after another!"

"And there's more where they came from!" Junpei added, pointing to various other faces around. More Digimon-like characters – Cyberdramon, ExVeemon, MarineAngemon, Devidramon, whatever – marched on the scene without reacting. All shared the same blank faces, lack of emotions, and lack of color. When they got right down to it, the kids could touch every single one like priceless museum exhibits but without getting busted or hurt.

"Grandioso!" Izumi chimed, "Have you ever seen anything so authentic?"

"Hold on a moment," Kouji spoke, "Don't you think there's something strange going on here?" The kids instantly paused at the former loner's words.

"Whaddaya mean, buddy?" Takuya queried.

"Doesn't anyone besides me think it's pretty absurd that the characters in this game look like Digimon? I mean, we're the only ones who know the Digital World exists. And unless Katsuharu and company blurted anything and everyone believed them, or government agents found a way through, these resemblances really defy coincidence. You know?"

"Hmm…" the others muttered. Being his usual self, Kouji always made good points now and then. Where exactly did Ding get such massive ideas from? Could she have been a digidestined at some point herself? Or maybe even a supposed agent? And for that matter, was this whole thing even a mere game anymore? So many questions wouldn't receive answers too soon. A mix of stomping and marching made the kids regroup and the villagers scatter. Giant as well as human-sized soldiers appeared on the scene.

"Errrr…I don't suppose they can tell us?" Tomoki stammered.

"**I** hope the big ones don't mistake us for lunch," Kouichi said. No matter what their size, half the soldiers were monitor-headed robots while the others looked like big chameleons. If these truly were Digimon, the group guessed these ones might be Champions, Ultimates, Megas, Armors, or even Hybrids.

One set consisted of chameleons having their left side of golden skin bordered by metal on the right. A rotating yellow right eye mismatched a blue eye on the left. One horn each protruded from on the nose and above each eye, with both the middle and right horns being metallic. Segmented tails having dark-gray spikes running on down, black sleeveless shirts, black pants, and stiff fingers like MetalGreymon on their right arms completed the figures.

Then there were lavender-colored, computer-themed mannequins. A horizontal hardware case balanced on top a blue-screened monitor bearing gold eyes and a rectangle of black dots where a mouth belonged. From the sides came skinny turquoise arms with five sharp, mobile fingers each. Alongside some buttons on the right separated from a left-sided CD drive, smooth white plastic legs containing special boosters made them picture perfect.

Next came another group of chameleons. Unlike the first bunch, these ones bore entirely mechanized personas with no attire whatsoever. Other than matching blue eyes, nobody found any coloration. Hinged knees, segmented torsos, and possibly one of the strongest lusters in existence added on to these creatures' exterior.

Oh, but it didn't stop there, as advanced versions of the computer soldiers clearly showed. It took two hardware boxes instead of only one to balance an extended monitor bearing the same desktop. Plus, two cord-like tentacles protruded from the monitor tops: one with a slim USB port cable, and the other with a bulky parallel port cable. Whereas those clumped legs seemed hardly dangerous at all, the square-fingered arms appeared to tell a different story.

But the digidestined construed the gargantuan ones as the scariest. For sure, the beige and silver dinosaur-like chameleons may as well have seen better days. Hands, shrouded wings, and flame-shaped spikes running down a massive tail couldn't conceal how they'd broken out from the iron shell. Straighter horns accompanied the same blue eyes as before upon a half-quadrangular head. To top it off, cracks ran through that segmented torso on their right hips.

Finally, there stood eerie masses of computer monitors balanced by three vertical cases this time. Each case had two CD drives and one round power button each. These soldiers might've bore the same head tentacles as the second set if not for flicker-spewing incisions where connector ends should've been. A black wavy line for a mouth stretched across a still wider monitor, but it expressed the ever same desktop and eyes. Two scythe-bladed cords on each side of the torso – the right of which two blades forked from the same arm – waved dangerously. And a cephalopodan mass of cords balanced all of this nicely. "Huh," Izumi commented, "Well, we've met the soldiers. What next?"

"Ding told us we'd participate as different characters," Takuya recalled, "But I don't feel any different. And I don't see any instructions around."

One of the smooth-legged computer robots stepped forward. "Organic tissue detected. Units identified under the following labels: Takuya Kanbara, Kouji Minamoto, Izumi Orimoto, Junpei Shibayama, Tomoki Himi, and Kouichi Kimura. Once human avatars for the Legendary Warrior programs. Last existing with this universe nearly half a century ago."

"Yes, that's us," Kouichi confirmed, "But what's going on here? How do you know about our affairs concerning the Digital World?"

Whereas Takuya and Kouji gave nervous yet irked looks, the soldiers approached the complaints apathetically. A half-metal chameleon spoke next; all units in the procession shared the same monotonous voice tone. "Questions mean little or nothing. You will proceed in an orderly manner towards the CPU for conversion."

Hearing the word 'conversion' obviously meant trouble. No way would the kids be caught dead having whoever or whatever was in charge turn them into cold, emotionless automatons! Clearly powerless to do anything else, they sped in the opposite direction, and that's when the real trouble began. "Supercharge!"

"System Crash!"

"Negatron Laser!"

"Deadly Keyboard!"

"Mutant Destroyer!"

"Cyber Scythe!" Yellow beams from each half-gold chameleon's mechanical arm sailed only inches above the digidestined's heads, followed by blue flashes the smooth-legged computers' monitors emanated. Yipes! Those blasts would've fried their hair and headgear in seconds flat! The lustrous chameleons' middle horns produced white rays that levitated any and all loose objects barricading the chase, barely missing the kids' feet. Keyboard silhouettes acted on command of countless square fingers and constructed more of an obstacle course via cubical missiles. And where tan energy streams courtesy of hands and middle horn belonging to the archosaur chameleons failed, wires and jagged scythe blades under the streets finally tripped up the digidestined without slashing them. Breaking free of the small soldiers' grips proved easier said than done.

"Hey, let us go right now!" Junpei demanded.

"Unh!" Izumi added, "This is no way to treat a girl!"

"We are female units," a luster chameleon responded, "Your morals are not ours to process." However, the following rescue showed that all hope wasn't lost yet.

"Shock Eyes!"

"Rainbow Spiral!" Pairs of yellow lightning bolts and technicolor helix beams showered the field in confusion. It thankfully missed the digidestined, and it stunned all soldiers without hurting them. All eyes turned towards an airborne sight of what could very well be more relatives for the ground-based reptiles. Yet another humanoid chameleon, with all gold skin instead of half and half, rode upon something shaped like a snake. Other than two tan eyes and lime spikes running along down the tail setting it apart, this one definitely wore the same outfit.

The snake-like steed boasted higher originality. Olive skin, colorful dragonfly wings, brown rotating eyes, and a thin red membrane around the tail tip accounted nicely for it. Plus, this one stretched approximately 36 feet long. This whole mess got stranger by the second! "Uh, think they're on our side?" Kouji wondered.

"Hope so," Takuya said.

"The main hindrances!" one of the cephalopod computers announced, "Eliminate!" Any damage the soldiers or mysterious rescuers caused to the scene disappeared instantly. The new pair dodged the assaults effortlessly before picking the group up in the blink of an eye. Nothing other than continued blasts burned up in the atmosphere, and the kids spoke no words riding miles off into a familiar dark void. Back on the planet, the soldiers stopped their attempts so they could honorably bow down for a scolding.

"They eluded you once more," a new female voice emitted from out of thin air.

"Our apologies, CPU," another half-and-half chameleon replied, "We have failed and are now obsolete technology."

"Negative," the voice countered, "I expected this occurrence. Hold your positions and allow exterior safeguards to operate." Words or not, it was anybody's guess who exactly was in control here.

Note: Sorry for rushing this chapter, but I'm always on a tight schedule. I really wanna finish up by the end of summer because I can't stay on Digimon forever. Sorry if I offended any Junzumi fans. I also apologize if new descriptions for the made-up Digimon seemed clichéd. And suggestions are always appreciated too. Please, PLEASE R+R!


	2. Chapter 2

Wherever the two chameleons headed, the digidestined hoped they knew what they were doing. What would've taken a human spaceship who knows how many centuries to traverse was cut down numerous sizes. Outer space looked no friendlier than the planet they just departed from. Heavenly bodies resembling the Seraphimoon, Ophanimoon, Cherubimoon, and beyond opened fire immediately as the seven passed by. The culprit's influence had spread farther than anyone imagined (no telling how many miles). But not even an entire shower of blasts withstood the reptilian pair's amazing speed, although the human quintet had doubts. Ten times a blast came close to frying their ankles. "If we only had our D-Tectors, we'd show those bullies who's boss!" Junpei yearned.

"Excuse me, lizards?" Takuya queried, "Where exactly are we headed?" All heads tilted in perplexity when neither reptile answered. Maybe they somehow lost their voices during the trip, or the noise level blotted out Takuya's words. And yet, the kids could hear each other just fine. "No answer. How d'ya like that?"

"Digimon or not, they're still reptiles," Kouichi figured, "Reptiles hear differently than humans."

"Wasn't it snakes?" Izumi said.

"Either way," Kouji responded, "Try speaking louder this time, Takuya."

"Alright. Hey, lizards! Where're you taking us?" Now came a response. The equestrian chameleon rotated its eyes back to make the appropriate facial contact. As soon as its pupils met theirs, it pointed a finger towards some opaque blue cloud at the very edge of the black spectrum. It appeared friendly enough, at least until entry.

"What is this?" Tomoki wondered. Only three feet within, electrical storms began disrupting the trip. Those with headgear held it tight as fierce winds attempted blowing them off-course. Even stranger, any successful lightning bolts barely affected the children but badly hurt the chameleons. If a planet lay behind this fog, it must've been a gas giant.

"Whoa!" Junpei exclaimed, "Everyone, hang on tight!"

"What's it look like we're doing?" Izumi cried.

"Better hope there's a place to land!" Kouji added, "If not, we'll be falling forever!" The fog lasted well over two miles, but the reptiles kept it together no matter how much lightning struck them. And it only went from bad to worse when Tomoki lost his grip and fell off into the blue unknown.

"Heeeeelllllllllp!"

"Tomoki!" the older kids called. Suddenly, another two flashes struck the lizards in the heads and made the four lose their own grip. Where they'd fall no one could tell for sure. Fortunately, the next scene provided more promise than anyone experienced that day. Another seemingly peaceful locale in the form of a dense forest by a river certainly appeared beyond evil influence. Four portals opened up to dump the older four off upon the banks before disappearing just as quickly.

"Well, we're here," Izumi announced, "Wherever 'here' is."

"Yes, but there's only five of us," Kouichi said, "Where're Tomoki and the lizards?" That's when the two chameleons exited the fog and levitated in front of them, but no 8-year old in an orange hat. Staring up into both sets of rotating eyes, nobody said anything until five seconds later.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Junpei asked, "Do you need to rest? Where'dja last see Tomoki?" More familiar sights answered his question nicely. The storm had tired both chameleons far beyond the maximum which their hearts tolerated on average. They glowed in that same aura as any Digimon did when reverting into digi-eggs. However, rather than eggs, six pentagon-shaped black platforms each with a distinct reptilian figurine appeared from their lighted silhouettes. Two figurines resembled the chameleon forms, but nobody recognized the others: a lime-green iguana, a black iguana, a lavender therapod dinosaur, and some long-necked dragon wearing that same outfit of black sleeveless shirt and pants. Each figurine orbited around the kids momentarily before floating up high and zooming towards distant locations. Whereas four went back into the cloud, they could almost see the iguana carvings 'jump' deeper into the forest.

"Whew!" Takuya declared, "I tell you, this game sure feels realistic."

"Too realistic if you ask me," Kouji spoke, "Whatever's going down, we're definitely not the ones in control here. It's safe to say we're even trapped."

"Call it a hunch, but I doubt Ding's responsible," Junpei guessed, "Like you said, the fact that everyone here looks like a Digimon defies coincidence. But I've never seen Digimon like those before."

"And **I** never thought someone could take on spirits of Digimon other than the Legendary Warriors," Kouichi noted, "Whoever rescued us turned into the same little statues Agunimon, Mercurymon, and so forth came from. Unless one of us knows otherwise, no other Digimon can do that."

"Well, there are lots of things about Digimon we don't yet know," Izumi said, "And we're stuck playing our assigned roles. So maybe if we play to the end, we'll find a way out. Game or not, this craziness must have an ending."

"That's definitely our only option now," Kouji admitted, "But where do we start? We don't have a clue what our roles are, and we can barely defend ourselves."

Everyone looked up and down the river. Calmer winds shook the green grass and pussy willows on the banks. Tall trees appeared possibly thousands of years old. Other than tiny fish swimming with the current, the group guessed other animal life was mostly likely just hiding. The river went on forever, and no one saw anything beyond the forest. Five kids knew of four accessible directions – into the forest behind them, across the river, upstream, or downstream – but narrowed it down to two choices. "The forest looks too cramped up," Junpei decided, "Why not follow the river?"

"But which way?" Takuya wondered. Meanwhile, Tomoki made a trek across a corner of the forest at that very moment. A fifth portal had spat him up around the same time the chameleons became their own figurines. He never saw where they went but hadn't time to worry about it on account of because finding the others was his first priority.

"Hello? Takuya? Junpei?" Earlier experiences in the Digital World strengthened Tomoki enough where he didn't feel too nervous right now. "Izumi? Kouji? Kouichi?" Then again, with hardly any defensive means, those experiences might go to waste. "How did all this happen, I wonder? Ding just can't be responsible…huh?" His eyes fell upon the closest fruit-bearing plant around, a strawberry bush. One particular fruit piece appeared the size of a beach ball and weighed down the rest of the plant. Tomoki's eyes and smile grew wide at such a nice snack. "Wow! What a strawberry!" Alongside warning him about dangers in the outside world, Yutaka also taught Tomoki how to recognize which wild fruits were okay to eat. This one was very promising; the young boy poked one finger into the strawberry and sucked off the juice. "Mm, mm!" Suddenly, Tomoki stepped back as it split down the middle and unveiled a green energy ball. In turn, this ball took human form and faded into a little girl his age.

"Hm?" she spoke, opening her eyes as she faced him.

"Ooh, look at that!" Izumi pointed out, "Did you ever see a piece of fruit that large?" All eyes turned in the direction from which the river flowed. Another fruit the size of a beach ball, a cranberry, came bumping along down.

"Looks like a cranberry," Kouji figured, "And it's coming our way." Indeed, the four need not move much as the cranberry headed straight towards them. Takuya ignored its movements suggesting animal instincts and picked it up from the water. He then set it down on the ground and picked up the nearest sharp rock around while the others huddled.

"Sure is delicious," Junpei said, "If it's ripe, let's make sure we save some for Tomoki."

"Will do," Takuya responded. But he dropped the rock immediately after it made contact with the cranberry, and all stood back as it flashed and split open like the strawberry before it. A black energy ball from inside then became an older human girl. She too opened her eyes while greeting her deliverers.

The older girl was definitely around Junpei's age. Her black-and-white outfit appeared even more behind the times than what Ding wore: white t-shirt; gray plaid skirt; and black vest, stockings, and slip-ons. A pair of blue spectacles over purple eyes along with red hair tied into pigtails by purple hair clips were the only bits of color on her figure, besides her skin. The younger girl expressed more color, however. She had magenta eyes and black hair tied in a ponytail by a fuchsia band. A lime-green t-shirt, black pants, and black tennis shoes completed her figure. Both girls certainly knew the digidestined, if not vice versa.

"I've been expecting you," the older girl spoke, "Thanks for springing me."

"Uh, you're welcome?" Kouji said.

"Where are our manners?" Kouichi stated, "Sorry, we forgot to introduce ourselves."

"My name's Nimiya Ishiwatari. And you five must be Kouichi, Junpei, Izumi, Kouji, and Takuya."

All eyes widened as the four jolted. "Wait a minute," Izumi said, "How do you know our names? And why haven't you soaked up more fashion sense?"

Nimiya nervously put her arms over her lower torso region. "For your information, I'd rather not expose my belly for the entire world to see. You dress how you want, and I'll dress how **I** want, okay?"

"C'mon, Izumi," Takuya urged, "Be nice."

"Well, you know," Izumi continued, "You should wear more colorful clothes. Black, gray, and white are so dull." Kouji, Junpei, Kouichi, Nimiya, and even Takuya gave irked looks. But the spectacled girl delivered a response to close the subject.

"I already told you once, okay? Besides, you weren't summoned here to discuss that. I'll tell you everything while we eat the cranberry." The others looked on nervously wondering if the fruit was fresh what with holding someone inside but shrugged and joined Nimiya in eating it. At the same time, Tomoki and the younger girl made their own acquaintance.

"Hello," she said, bowing, "I'm Valese Ishiwatari. And you must be Tomoki."

"Um, yeah. But how do you know my name?"

"Oh, I know more than just your name," Valese responded as they both sat down to a strawberry snack, "I've been watching you and your friends for quite a while now. And don't worry, my sister Nimiya and I are humans just like the rest of you." Nimiya and Valese divulged into everything they knew, from present time to a day when they became Chosen Children.

As Izumi correctly guessed, she and the guys had far more to learn about Digimon. And according to the Ishiwatari sisters, there existed not just one but many Digital Worlds. Ophanimon certainly hadn't any clue who'd wield the various spirits and who'd instantly return back home when she sent her distress call. Except, the Worm Trailmon upon which Valese and Nimiya rode ended up taking a wrong portal. Wherever they landed, it obviously wasn't the same Digital World Takuya's group knew. Fortunately, the Trailmon dumped them off near a well-populated settlement where they obtained an explanation of things and Valese's spirit of a rare Rookie Digimon.

The sisters learned what they could about a war on 'Digital Earth' between Human-types and Beast-types, and how this location came to be. Spanning somewhere between Lucemon's imprisonment and Cherubimon's revolt, civilizations arose on other heavenly bodies beyond the three digital moons. Nearly half died trying; the other half rose to a certain extent. Naturally, there were those who often longed to explore the outer unknown but dared not make the treacherous journey. If anyone could communicate between worlds, perhaps following conflicts at Digital Earth somehow provided too much interference or other.

Upon first glance, there appeared nothing special about the one planet Nimiya and Valese landed on. It was by far the farthest planet in the starry realm. Steamy jungles covered quite a fair portion of this one world. Lakes, rivers, but mostly swamps dotted the landscape. All in all, its tropical environment favored the settlement of mostly reptilian Digimon: Tyrannomon, WarGrowlmon, Sandiramon, Veemon, Darklizardmon, Machinedramon, etc. The list went on, but the sisters spared everyone else the boredom of reciting every single one. Like Digital Earth (and probably any other body), this one had its fair share of problems. Rather than of Human and Beast, revived through Cherubimon no thanks to Lucemon, the sisters got caught in a war between organic and technological.

Machine Digimon actually got along pretty well with anything carbon-based. They had their fights now and then, but both sides accepted each other's differences with a sense of segregation. But one day, two Rookie Digimon named IronIguanamon and Rokushoumon sought to change this. Convincing their brethren with outlandish ideas of superiority, they managed assaults upon organic settlements. Low numbers meant nothing since the machines had better weapons. Of course, both sides also boasted fair shares of traitors. Some organic Digimon willingly accepted technological changes by exchanging vital information for power. And there were a few sympathetic androids who wished to embrace what differences set both sides apart in the first place.

Valese and Nimiya obtained their respective spirits of Iguanamon and BlackIguanamon quite easily, with Champion digivolutions of Kinhamon and Iromon following soon after. But teamwork was another story altogether; this duo's mission didn't come without internal conflicts. Before crossing universes, the siblings' family headed for a traumatic breakage. The girls woke up one day and discovered quarreling parents. Nothing improved as days turned into weeks and months. Pretty soon, Nimiya and Valese had become so tainted by their mom and dad's bickering that they began demonstrating the horrid influence towards each other. It continued on even after they obtained digivolutions to Ultimate, Warudramon and Giganotomon. Eventually, the evil Rookies (who'd also long since reached Champion and Ultimate) exploited the conflict via having them blame each other for a village's destruction.

Unlike most of the planet, this particular village's locale rested on rocky terrain. The girls fought off a good number of invaders while seeing enemies damage other defenses around. An argument from earlier that day hindered teamwork. "This is all your fault!" Nimiya accused.

"Me?" Valese cried, "You did this!"

"Don't play dumb. You were the closest to stopping them."

"No, you were. You're just blaming me so you can feel superior and discourage me from helping everyone out."

"As if you weren't? Saving up all that useless knowledge and using your spirits to backstab me when the moment's right?"

"Funny you should mention that, even if it's off-topic. You've always been jealous whenever I came home with better marks in school and Mom and Dad praised me more for it."

"That does it! At least **I** know how to build my muscles! We settle this right here right now!"

"I'm a thinker, not a fighter. But in your case, I'll make an exception!" Fire and lightning seemed to radiate from both their eyes. Both stared each other down for three seconds before withdrawing their D-Tectors. "Execute! Spirit Evolution! …Iguanamon!"

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …BlackIguanamon!" The previous invaders caused significant destruction, but this pair's fight caused enhanced stupor. For Rookies, they certainly knew how to make an aftershock of a mess! Some shook their heads wondering just how their planet wound up depending on such quarrelsome beings. Destroying the village even more, this fight made the sisters look no better than any other malicious figure they already faced or soon would later on. Increasing anger charged their attacks to the average power level of a Mega. Iguanamon glowed yellow-green as her energy silhouette became a boulder-sized sphere. A gray, javelin-shaped silhouette of BlackIguanamon grew the same size without the distortion.

"Skin Shed!"

"Nocturnal Needle!" The yellow-green sphere exploded into a million pieces and met the javelin shadow head-on. Villagers ran in various directions while tiny explosions foreshadowed one giant explosion that eliminated what remained of the settlement. One tiny blast each sent a scar across Iguanamon's neck and BlackIguanamon's right paw, but the following shockwaves gave them no time to notice. Iguanamon sprawled onto three rocky ledges before she reverted into Valese, lying on her back. BlackIguanamon went rolling down a hillside for a minute or until she impacted on her belly and became Nimiya once more.

"That'll…teach her," Valese wheezed.

"She had it…coming," Nimiya gasped. Both sisters then passed out, never seeing their D-Tectors' screens crack before dissolving. And yet, someone didn't intend for them to just die like that.


	3. Chapter 3

Cloaked figures appeared to the sisters and kept them separated for at least two days. Both eventually awoke to find themselves in their own secret dimensions far from anyone else's influence. Reflecting on previous ordeals during that time span, neither thought they'd miss the other so much before their ensuing permanent reunion. Despite her schoolgirl look, Nimiya always looked forward to a good fight or workout. Unfortunately, her determination and short fuse explained why she always got bad marks in school. On the other hand, Valese was a regular child prodigy: Only a private school could handle her thinking capacity. But she usually preferred running away from a fight instead of participating. It took a battle to split the duo apart; another battle brought them back together once they realized their mutual goals. A formation of Kinhamon using Iromon as a steed resulted from a renewed sibling friendship. Come battle's end, both immediately hugged and made up their quarrel. "It's been two days, but that's still too long," Nimiya began, "Valese, words can't describe how sorry I am for everything."

"The feeling's mutual," Valese agreed, "Yeah, I'm sorry too." Neither girl noticed each other's scars until they broke away. "Oh, you got a nasty scar on your hand."

"Me? You got one on the neck."

Both glanced to the side momentarily. "Aw, who cares? As long as we're back together, that's all that matters. Let's never bicker again."

"Yeah, you said it. Mom and Dad's problems aren't ours anyhow. Let's go eat dinner." As with Digital Earth, foreign planets throughout digital space grew trees of meat apples. But due to injurious war, they were becoming increasingly rare on this patch of digital dirt. Such a plant required natural surroundings and could hardly be reproduced synthetically. Fortunately for the sisters, nobody bothered them too soon. They continued talking after building a fire, harvesting apples, and gathering dried grass and leaves together into one large cushion. "Don't know about you, but I got a lot ta answer for."

"What do you mean?"

"My jealousy towards you. Even before Mom and Dad starting fighting, I've always been jealous that you get so many good grades and go to a special school. You said it yerself."

"Aw, you're not the only one. I'm just as much to blame; all those times I came home with a perfect report card, I didn't have to go bragging about myself and making a big scene out of it."

"At least you have something to brag about."

"You do too. I mean, I'd give up my smarts just to be as strong and brave as you. My studies can only take me so far." Another silence followed the talk. Despite having already reflected on their own faults, telling it face to face made both once again feel like they never saw it that way before. "Nimiya, do we have anything in common at all besides our last name?"

"Of course we do. You know that as well as me." Valese's eyes grew heavy while the fire dimmed; she fell asleep on her sister's shoulder, slipping little by little onto her lap. Nimiya stared in satisfaction before taking off her spectacles, placing them and the new D-Tectors off to one side, and lying down to sleep. "Good night, sis."

"Wow," Izumi commented, "That's some story."

"Glad you were able to kiss and make up," Junpei added, "Too bad you also got scars." At that, the other four in his group gave irked expressions for supposed rudeness.

"No harm done," Nimiya reassured, massaging her mark, "It pains us to remember that one fight every time we look at our scars, but we hardly notice anything anymore."

"Swell," Takuya said, "What happened next?"

"We continued fighting the war while remembering a brief lecture those mysterious figures gave us: If we used our spirits for petty arguments again, we'd lose both them and our D-Tectors and remain stranded. We still had our disagreements oftentimes, but thankfully nothing major. Anyways, even after we obtained our spirits' Mega forms – mine being Astermon and Valese having Shashumon – and even after we brought opposing sides together, our two main enemies escaped and sought to start the same thing all over."

"Didn't you ever stop 'em fer good?" Tomoki asked, between bites of strawberry.

"Hardly," Valese answered, "They de-digivolved back to Rookie so as to conserve power and travel more easily. Like good heroes, we chased them from planet to planet and also took time to solve any other problems coming our way. Nothing changed until the four of us landed on this one dark world oppressed by ugly demon Digimon. Rokushoumon and IronIguanamon – or Dekimon and MutantCybormon, or whatever they call themselves – came up against the planet's four strongest bogeys. Nimiya and I didn't reach the fight quickly enough. After destroying two demons, the two androids wouldn't let anyone surpass them as they DNA-digivolved into something called Matrixmon."

"Matrixmon?" Kouji said.

"Correct," Nimiya continued, "She was so powerful that she destroyed the remaining half and the planet itself. My sister and I woke up in our ship floating miles from where the planet once existed, not knowing how we escaped without lifting a finger. Then our D-Tectors signified her two components' life energies, and the chase resumed for seven more unfortunate planets. Matrixmon continually eluded us until a power surge teleported her to Digital Earth. Having brought her volatile energy and form under control, she practically rivaled the Great Angels and Legendary Warriors combined."

"No way!" Tomoki disagreed, "Don't tell me they beat Kumamon and everyone!"

"Nobody even saw her coming," Valese put in, "Before the Great Angels realized it and the Legendary Warriors took physical form, they all had already lost. She first absorbed the Angels and just blasted the Warriors sky high, considering them useless without human avatars. We couldn't arrive soon enough to prevent her from using her powers to turn everyone into mindless drones. Nimiya and I fell back after finally giving her a piece of our own minds but returned a month later."

"Things went from worse to worst during our absence," Nimiya said, "We met up with the Legendary Warriors while taking refuge on the Seraphimoon. Even without humans, they could still become Susanoomon and help us take out Matrixmon once and for all. Although their DNA didn't agree with ours since it was too tuned in to yours, we assumed our options more than enough. But when we returned, Matrixmon crushed us and Susanoomon in seconds flat. After separating it into all ten elements, she absorbed four of them like she did the angels: the spirits of Metal, Water, Earth, and Wood. Valese and I barely managed saving and scattering the other six across the cosmos not knowing where they ended up. After sending another distress call to you in the Real World, we continued our vain efforts to stop Matrixmon for several more months until she injured us almost fatally. Then the spirits of Kinhamon and Iromon took on their own lives and put me in a cranberry and Valese in a strawberry to rest while they picked up from where we all left off."

"You brought us here?" Kouichi said.

"We only sent a distress call. I couldn't say how you got here, but it wasn't an accident."

All eight kids stood up to stretch. Who knows, the story must've lasted about an hour to the most. "My!" Tomoki declared, "That's gotta be the longest story I ever heard in my life! But if Matrixmon turned everybody into a drone, how'd you girls escape?"

"Iguanamon, BlackIguanamon, IronIguanamon, Rokushoumon, and all their forms are different from other Digimon in two ways," Valese explained, "Firstly, they give off a sort of radiation only humans feel. This radiation made us immune to Matrixmon's charms. Secondly, rather than express Fractal Code, they dissolve into raw data when defeated. We were pretty surprised ourselves at first."

"How long has Matrixmon been in power?" Takuya asked.

"I have no idea," Nimiya answered, "We'd only fought her close enough to a year when we got sealed in those fruits."

"Well, judging by the three moons and a little beyond, her influence is still spreading," Kouji figured, "But she hasn't reached here yet, so we're off to a good start."

"Yeah, but we don't have our spirits or D-Tectors," Kouichi reminded, "So how can we help?"

In response, Nimiya handed out five familiar gizmos from her skirt pocket to each one's respective owner. Valese followed suit at the same time. "Ophanimon entrusted your D-Tectors to the Legendary Warriors before Matrixmon absorbed her," the older sister said, "And another exchange between them and us occurred when we reached the Seraphimoon." Spirits or not, Ophanimon's main human helpers felt satisfied for the time being. Who knows, maybe they'd find their spirits as the journey progressed. Colored dots representing Tomoki and Valese alongside an unknown pair showed up on the older kids' D-Tectors and vice versa.

Everyone definitely recognized the essence of this unknown pair: spirit figurines. A more detailed look revealed them hidden in some temple-like structure far deeper into the forest. Fortunately, the younger kids were slightly closer, so maybe they'd all come back together as one group there. But whose spirits did this structure hold? Well, only one way to find out!

Note: Sorry for putting in too much dialogue, but I had to set the story's mood. Hopefully there'll be more action by the next chapter. Just keep reading and reviewing!


	4. Chapter 4

Like anyone else, the sisters' D-Tectors bore the same colors as the Digimon they took after. Valese had a lime digivice with patches of tan on the corners. Nimiya wielded a black digivice which could easily be mistaken as Kouichi's if not for brown in place of gray. Whoever separated them after the one argument fortunately provided new D-Tectors with the same decals like those of Takuya and Kouji. Anyhow, nobody could waste time and so set off towards their first goal. Then Izumi realized something too late. "Oh no! We didn't save some cranberry for Tomoki and Valese!"

"That's okay," Nimiya said, "My D-Tector shows them both moving in the same direction, so Tomoki already released my sister. I believe we all know what happened afterward." Is it any wonder I love that girl? Takuya thought while flashing Izumi a smile. Kouji, Junpei, and Kouichi desperately wanted to strangle the pair so they'd just confess and get it over with. But recalling Nimiya's story, they put the idea aside realizing how rushed romance might interfere with the mission. Too bad the spectacled girl caught Takuya's smile instead. "Is something wrong, Takuya?"

"Uhh…" he stuttered, "No, nothing's wrong. Just hopped on my train of thought too soon."

"Hmmm," the other boys said. Nimiya felt the same suspicion mixed in with irritation while Takuya and Izumi felt nervous (ironically, neither one caught each other's anxiety). Silence covered all children for the next two hours during which they admired the majestic vegetation around. Whereas everyone else took it in naturally, the sisters' expressions told all how foreign this experience must've become. They'd spent far too much time fighting Matrixmon on a twisted planet to remember a simple stroll, much less one down an old-growth forest. Plus, being cramped up inside giant fruits wasn't any friendlier mainly towards their limbs. And for all their progression, everyone eventually forgot to notice how close they were to a reunion.

"A video game?" Valese said.

"Yep," Tomoki explained, "It was in the middle of some continent's brief history when it fizzled out and sent us to the Digital World, or whatever it's called."

"Just go with 'universe'."

"Right. Anyways, that's how we got there. You know the rest." Both young sets of eyes came back into focus as they looked closer at their D-Tector screens. They still had quite a journey ahead since white dots representing the spirits remained at the very top. However, the dark- and light-green dots symbolizing them seemed closer to a set composed of red, dark-blue, purple, light-blue, black, and brown: who else but the older Chosen Children. "Hey, how about that! We're almost to the older kids!"

"Yes, we are! And it looks like they're behind those trees ahead of us." The pair immediately made a break for it. On the opposite side lay an isolated clearing filled not only with the older digidestined but also a crystal-clear pond. A flat grassy patch gave way to flourishing bilberry bushes. Tomoki and Valese surprised them during a picnic on a large rock conveniently nearby. "Hello, friends!"

"Whoa!" Kouji commented, dropping some berries, "That was quite an entrance."

"Sorry about that," Tomoki apologized as they joined the picnic, "But at least we're all together now."

"That's the forest for you, full of surprises," Junpei shrugged.

"I wonder what a grassland's doing all the way out here?" Valese wondered, her cheeks full of berries.

"We just found it," Izumi explained, "And we've all been walking for at least two hours, so we needed the rest. Not to mention the delicious and probably rare berries." A half hour passed by before the reunited octet deemed the time right to press on. And smooth sailing appeared on their trail a quarter back into the forest. Temperatures among the trees had long since soared during the lunch break, but everyone easily took it head-on. Then snapped twigs halted all energetic feet.

"What was that?" Nimiya wondered.

"It came from over there," Takuya pointed out. The group tiptoed towards the source and immediately jolted at the sight. A snake colored of red and white stripes with gold markings, green hair, blue eyes, silver-feathered wings where ears belonged, a strange symbol on its forehead, and a brass flame-shaped tail stared back without making a move. Could it be friend or foe? And did its wobbling signify heat exhaustion or preparation for attack? Either way, nobody realized how curious it might feel about them until Kouichi analyzed it.

"That's an Armor Digimon called Quetzalmon. Despite preference to a tropical environment, he's got an arsenal of freezing attacks to show off."

"Correct," Quetzalmon wheezed, "I tell you, it's easy to get lost in this jungle."

"What's wrong?" Tomoki asked.

"Too hot. I can barely slither around, much less fly. The shade doesn't help much, and my wings would get caught in the branches. Do you know of any nearby water sources? If so, could you take me there?"

"Maybe," Kouji said, "How do we know we can trust you?"

"Because I know Ophanimon's Chosen when I see them, even with one missing. I can see in your eyes that you must do battle against evil forces once more but are without the proper talismans to do so: the spirits of very special Digimon?"

"Yes," Nimiya said, "This jungle stretches for miles, but our D-Tectors tell us to continue straight on."

"I see. There lies a temple somewhere amongst the trees, though I can't remember exactly where. Perhaps it holds your spirits."

"Great!" Junpei said, "We're on the right track. Thanks!"

But Quetzalmon held them back a bit longer. "Wait a minute! Its locked doors can only be opened by a special key held within my scales. If you can take me to some water so I can cool off, I'll gladly hand it over."

Everybody else faced each other, not yet knowing how to respond. The snake put on quite a show if he really did mean them harm. Could he have been working for Matrixmon? Highly doubtful. Was he planning his own hostile takeover? That seemed likely. And for that matter, did Quetzalmon truly hold the only key to this supposed temple? In the end, the digidestined succumbed to his weary eyes as they hoisted him upon their shoulders and went back the way they came. Like their picnic, trips to and from the bilberry pond lasted a half hour each. The kids used up their last bit of vigor just to toss him into the refreshing water by the time they completely retraced all steps. But even fatigue couldn't blot out a splendid sight of Quetzalmon breaking the surface and glowing radiantly. His exhaustion had faded while theirs returned. "Wow," Kouichi commented, "He could blind us with that."

"Yeah," Takuya agreed, "Wonder what he's up to?"

"You've done me a boon this day, Chosen Children. As promised, here's the key. Hold out your D-Tectors." With no other options, the digidestined went ahead and complied. Quetzalmon concentrated with closed eyes as the symbol on his forehead sparkled furiously. It then emitted eight streams of Fractal Code which met the D-Tectors head-on. Each screen displayed one large distinct letter; only the two sisters came close to recognizing anything.

"Huh," Kouji noted, "Must be pieces of some password."

"That means the temple is either a magical stone structure or really a spaceship," Junpei guessed, "Other than that, I couldn't say."

"I am sorry my calamity delayed you your progress," Quetzalmon apologized.

"Nah, don't be," Izumi reassured, "We're only happy to help. Don't care how long it takes, we do what we must." The others smiled and nodded in agreement.

"Nevertheless, time is of the essence. There's no telling how long it will be before evil forces penetrate the fog far above our heads. Use this." Quetzalmon beat his wings hard, dropping feathers at the kids' feet instead of blowing wind. As they bent down and picked up one each for observation, the feathers didn't look like much.

"What's with the feathers?" Tomoki asked.

"Those are magical feathers. They will transport you anywhere if you just imagine it. But they can act out of control, so try not to move too quickly. And they only work on this plain, so don't bother thinking of places beyond that atmospheric fog. I bid you farewell." Quetzalmon dove back into the pond, never resurfacing again. All eyes resumed curiously observing the feathers as everyone plotted a repeated trip.

"Okay," Kouichi said, "Quetzalmon told us to think about where we wanna go. And we wanna go to the temple, right?"

"But we've never visited the temple before today," Junpei reminded, "Now what?"

"Wherever it is, I just want this feather to take me there in a flash," Nimiya said, "I don't care either way." Then it happened: The pigtailed redhead began floating above the trees before she took off.

"C'mon, let's follow her!" Kouji exclaimed.

"Yeah!" the others added. Six hands held the feathers up high as the remaining digidestined levitated and zoomed. What would've lasted possibly a maximum of two hours got cut down. An endless mass of forest blanketed the scene. No other ponds or rivers penetrated the green. Everyone felt like a race car, but Junpei and Valese had fewer troubles since they only clutched a feather. Kouji used his free hand to keep his kerchief from flying off, Tomoki and Kouichi their hats, and Takuya his hat and goggles. Izumi and Nimiya had a harder time what with clutching their feathers, skirts, the former's hat, and the latter's spectacles. In fact, the spectacles wearer barely saw anything since her cubitus blocked part of her eyesight.

"Stop, stop!" Izumi demanded. At her command, the feather left the girl floating and gave her time to catch her breath.

"Slow down!" came Takuya's voice. Turning around, Izumi's eyes closed tightly as she awaited his collision. Instead, only a slight gust presented itself with him just inches away. "What a close call!"

"I'll say! Hmm…" Takuya and Izumi then peered down at the aforementioned 'temple'. Some small, flat triangular mass lay upon another isolated grassy patch. The two could make out a stout fuselage, swept-back wings combined with tail assembly, cockpit, and four or five rocket engines. Moss, vines, foliage, and brown areas (possibly iron rust) shrouded the object in more mystery. "I'm guessing this must be the temple. Looks like Junpei guessed right the second time."

"Well, we're not doing much just floating here. Alright, let's go down gently."

"I hear ya."

But the pair's feet made unfriendly contact with the ground below no thanks to the unruly dropped feathers. Utter relaxation momentarily replaced all awareness. "I'm alive!" the two declared in unison, unwittingly hugging each other, "I'm alive! I could just kiss you!" Both eyes then widened in realization before they both broke away. Between blushing and stammering, neither really minded the gesture. Plus, Izumi didn't smack Takuya again, or vice versa. However, they had to mind Nimiya's following crack.

"Are you two going steady?" The other older kids and Tomoki closed in on the abashed pair. Leave it to someone like her to ruin a happy moment, they both thought.

"What're you talking about?" Izumi asked.

"No games, Izumi, I can see you both blushing. Is Takuya yer boyfriend?"

"Nope," Junpei answered, "But he could be if he tries hard enough."

"Let's talk about something else, already," Takuya dismissed, "We made it to the temple, now what?"

"Over here!" Valese called. The others then joined the little girl at what appeared to be the temple doors. "Class Musci, division Bryophyta. _Andreaea_ _mutabilis_, or granite moss. Found in mountainous regions and the Arctic, mainly Canada and the United States, it often grows on granite. That's where its name comes from."

"No offense, but can we just save the science lesson for now?" Kouji requested, "What's the deal, anyway?"

"Sorry, I get carried away. I'm trying to see how old this thing really is. Let's see…judging by the carbon dating of this dead plant material…carry the two…not to mention all this rust…" Valese's eyes widened. "Nimiya! I'd have to say we've slept in those fruits for at least 55 years!" All other eyes widened.

"55 years?" Kouichi gasped, "No fooling?"

"I did the math. My parents once enlisted my critical thinking skills to get an oven working again when three weeks' worth of repair specialists failed, and we were eating roasts in no time flat."

"Wait a second!" Nimiya realized, "Valese, take a closer look! I recognize that rudder anywhere; this temple is actually our spaceship!"

Everyone stepped back to admire the bulk. How'd it get there in the first place? Flight existed nowhere within the Iguanamon chain unless suggested otherwise. It seemed much too heavy even for Astermon to lift. Anyone could've piloted it, including Kinhamon. Then again, maybe someone or something found it after the sisters specifically lost the thing on Digital Earth. "Sure is old," Izumi said, "Do you think it's powerful enough to take us out of here?"

"Maybe," Valese surmised, "The power cells have a half-life of at least 200 years. But without the proper tools, it'll take a while to salvage."

"What about the blue fog far above?" Kouji said, "It sure is stormy up there. Does this thing have any weapons or shields?"

"Yes, but it's hard to say how well the shields can protect us," Nimiya answered, "What kind of storms are we talking here?"

"Recalling from science class, it's kind of like Neptune," Junpei explained, "Two miles of blue fog, with storms lasting who knows how long. It seems to hurt Digimon more than it does humans."

"Eh, let's worry about that later and find those spirits first," Takuya decided, "My D-Tector's pinpointing them inside. Let's input the password." But before anybody reacted, Quetzalmon's imparted Fractal Code acted on its own power. Each stream absorbed into what appeared as a mechanical door latch while the doors remained closed.

"Huh," Tomoki said, "We gave the code, but nothing happened."

"Frankly!" Seeing each letter on each D-Tector, the sisters put two and two together and called out their chosen password. Then the doors slid open, disturbing decades' worth of buildup.

"Frankly?" Kouichi wondered as the group stepped inside.

"The doors are voice-activated," Valese explained, "They respond only to the ship's owners, and only if it's an authentic command; no recordings. We had to choose a seven-letter password when the lizard people gave it to us."

"And since there are only eight of us here…" Nimiya began.

"Just look at this place," Izumi stated. Paint peeled from the ceiling and walls. Dust covered everything in sight. Other various doors leaned from their hinges, ready to fall off any given second. Rusty spots signified hidden holes, some of which long since collapsed upon themselves. Any light currently filling the ship only unveiled certain sections, so the digidestined kept an extra watchful eye where they stepped while brushing dust away.

"I wonder how old this refrigerator is?" Kouji said. Indeed, this appliance must've seen better days. It boasted thicker layers of rust than the ship itself or any other object. One simple tug on the door made it fall off, emitting a hefty malodor. Each digidestined barely missed falling down possible holes as they all struggled to place it back over the black foodstuffs even though it didn't completely make for fresher air.

"Now, back to those spirits," Kouichi said, "They must be inside those controls." Resuming cautious attitudes, the group slowly marched over towards the front of the ship. But progression halted when they gave more familiar figures a second look. Two toys bearing Digimon likenesses stared on without so much as flinching. A metal patch covering a bionic blue right eye mismatched by a yellow left eye ornamented a silver-skinned biped iguana's face. Then stood a small, lavender metal box upon a larger one with more details to come: lateral copper antennae; gold eyes; multicolored square lights for a mouth; mint-green arms with jagged crab claws on the ends; and caterpillar tracks in place of legs. As usual, only one human pair instantly recognized these two as IronIguanamon and Rokushoumon.

"Whoa," Takuya commented, "Don't tell me they piloted the ship here."

"IronIguanamon could care less about mismatched eyes, since her Metal Glare cuts through ten inches of steel," Izumi observed, "Rokushoumon's no ordinary rust bucket; her Rusty Claw and Bronze Laser attacks will tell you that firsthand."

"Fake or not, we gotta find those spirits," Nimiya said, "I don't trust these toys for one second." So the group finished walking to the ship's front in single file so as not to further disturb two aisles of five chairs each. Despite keeping a watchful eye behind, nobody noticed careful movements from either figure's head or eyes. All knelt down at a metal casing from which matching D-Tector signals emanated.

"So, it's coming from inside here," Tomoki said, "How do we get this metal covering off?"

"It's a loose-fitting panel," Nimiya continued, brushing off dust, "I think…"

"Metal Glare!"

"Bronze Laser!"

"Get down!" Kouji pushed Nimiya, Tomoki, and Takuya off to the right out of harm's way. Izumi, Junpei, Kouichi, Valese jumped back to the left as a lone blue laser accompanied by two tan singed the panel. Although the lasers narrowly missed, everyone instantly checked themselves for possible damage after standing back up. Surprise hardly touched down when the responsible culprits strolled up in plain sight.

"So yer not toys or statues after all," Junpei said.

"Negative," IronIguanamon replied, "Playthings dilapidate promptly, and sculptures lack momentum."

"Dilapidate?" Tomoki wondered.

"That means 'fall apart'," Kouichi translated.

"What are you two, scientists?" Junpei put in, "And did you pilot the ship here?"

"Affirmative," Rokushoumon added, "We were the CPU's first pioneers to this orphic landscape for exploration and further conversion exactly five and one-half digital decades ago. But atmospheric disturbances short-circuited our internal hardware. Without manual pilots, the vehicle impacted upon this point."

"CPU?" Takuya wondered.

"Central processing unit," Valese explained, "That's the section of a computer that handles most data: basically a computer's heart."

"And it is how we address our manufacturer Matrixmon," IronIguanamon said, "You will ignore all hindrances and accompany us back to the mainframe for conversion."

"Again with Matrixmon and this talk about conversion," Izumi retorted, "Well, you can just go back and tell her we said 'Thanks, but no thanks'."

"Bad command or file name. Bronze Laser!"

"Metal Glare!" More blue and tan blasts filled the scene, damaging all except the digidestined or their digivices. Kouji and Junpei each lifted a chair off the floor and retaliated. Lasers made a rain of plastic and cotton but couldn't prevent the wide projectiles from knocking the bothersome Rookies underneath a pile of rubble. "Malfunction! Must fix error!" Although more chairs buried them further, Rokushoumon and IronIguanamon's following uncoordinated attack increased the danger and dodging.

"Darn it, that won't last forever!" Tomoki cried, "We need those spirits!"

"C'mon, let's break 'em out!" Takuya announced. He, Nimiya, and Izumi tugged at the panel while the others provided cover. The mechanical Digimon's assault then halted long enough for Rokushoumon to put her claws together from out of the rubble and fire off some green claw-shaped energy.

"Rusty Claw!" No matter what happened, the blast dissolved anything it came in contact with while heading straight for the back of Nimiya's head. Time seemed to freeze as a flash emanated from behind the panel, unveiling a certain figurine pair who dispersed the attack. All eyes stared up in recognition of the same iguana shapes that flew off earlier.

"It's those lizards again!" Kouichi stated, "Or something like them."

"The spirits of Iguanamon and BlackIguanamon," Nimiya said, "Valese, c'mon!"

"Right!" The sisters held their D-Tectors high to reaccept the spirits. Ironically, this and their Spirit Evolution lasted as long as it took IronIguanamon to help Rokushoumon out of the rubble.

"Execute! Spirit Evolution!"

"Iguanamon!"

"BlackIguanamon!"

Stepping out of the cotton and plastic, the robot Digimon's eyes widened at their mistake. Two new iguanas – one lime-green with tan eyes and the other black with brown eyes – stood ready to give them a fair fight. With nothing else to do, the other kids looked on and made the usual observations.

"Let's see what we have here," Kouji began, "Iguanamon's always up for a good brawl, drawing from her Skin Shed and Iguana Slam. BlackIguanamon's Nocturnal Needle packs quite a punch, but she's usually the passive type."

"Funny," Junpei commented, "Who would've thought the girls would take on Digimon spirits with opposite characteristics?"

"Metal Glare!"

"Bronze Laser!"

"Nocturnal Needle!"

"Skin Shed!" Rokushoumon and IronIguanamon's blasts combined into a triple helix which still didn't withstand the following counterattacks. Using the cloud as cover, which the other kids coughed from, Iguanamon grabbed BlackIguanamon so they could ball up and lunge forward. "Iguana Slam!" Surrounded by a silver aura, the reptilian pair slammed their opponents to the ship's hind section. The mini androids stood back up, but that last hit scrambled their sensors so badly that everything around appeared to wobble.

"New malfunction," Rokushoumon said, "Optic sensors out of focus. Cannot detect combination human/Digimon signals."

"This error should not have occurred," IronIguanamon added, "Unless we download the organisms upon the homepage, the CPU will total us."

"Wrong again! Iguana Slam!" Although the androids retained their hearing and turned in the direction of Iguanamon's voice, neither defended quickly enough. Iguanamon and BlackIguanamon slammed a second time, forcing all four back out into the more open environment. Wrestling and firepower disturbed the ship more than the forest. The others barely kept good balance; Izumi's hand accidentally landed on some button. Internal hardware defied the vehicle's aged condition: Lights came on, rockets fired up, and the whole thing rumbled alive. That is, until everything shut down just as quickly.

"Foolish organic tissue," IronIguanamon said, "Only we contain knowledge to restore this transport to its original state. If you desire to depart this wasteland, submit to the CPU."

"I heard that before," BlackIguanamon retorted, "Tell us another one."

"We will not impart a single detail unless we mark your hard drives with a seal of approval," Rokushoumon chimed, "Centuries or millennia, you shall adapt Matrixmon's programming."

"Our options are limited, sis," Iguanamon said, "I hate to say it, but they might be our only chance for leaving."

"Then we'll just hafta beat the truth outta them. Oof!" IronIguanamon grabbed BlackIguanamon by the neck and heaved her up against a nearby rock, not letting go even for a second. Rokushoumon followed suit with Iguanamon. Caught in a new trap, the reptiles vainly struggled for freedom.

"Refusal was not an option," Rokushoumon stated, "Now we will dominate your crew and transport after your raw data follows the present wind current."

"Iguanamon…remember our fight…when we got scars?" BlackIguanamon gagged as the androids' grip tightened.

"How could…I forget?" she replied.

"Concentrate…all energy into…one large mass!"

"I'll…try." Gray and yellow-green flashes shrouded the field. Continuously holding on, Rokushoumon and IronIguanamon had suspicions but hid their nervousness (or lack thereof).

"It matters little whatever technique you execute," IronIguanamon said, "Organic shutdown is imminent." However, the technological pair switched places as a growing yellow-green sphere and gray javelin silhouettes levitated them miles up off the ground. Back at the ship's open doorway, having tired of not seeing the action, the other digidestined's jaws dropped at the sight. String-like energy projections jutted from the iguanas' backs while the main accumulations carried the opponents ever higher.

"Skin Shed!

"Nocturnal Needle!" Unable to contain the power any longer, Iguanamon and BlackIguanamon unleashed a fireworks display. The yellow-green ball finished off Rokushoumon as it went supernova. The gray javelin zoomed in an arc while evaporating, taking out IronIguanamon in the process. But instead of flying off, their data absorbed into the ship and gave it the proper restoration job. Plants and rust fell off like paper. Doors reconnected back to hinges, holes were filled in, dust got flushed out, and even the refrigerator and the food it stored felt fresh once again. Everyone else joined the exhausted sisters right after they reverted back to humans.

"That was incredible!" Tomoki declared, "Better than the story!"

"Not only that, but the ship's all set to go!" Takuya added.

"Bring us to the drivers' seats, please," Nimiya requested, puffing.

"Are you sure?" Kouichi queried, "You look like the battle took a lot outta you. Maybe you should let two of us drive."

"We're the only ones who can pilot it," Valese responded, "We'll set a course for Digital Earth and have autopilot take over from there. But first, it needs a run to get the gyros and so forth going." Everyone else helped the weary siblings aboard the spacecraft. An hour and a half passed until they all decided the ship had a long enough run. Then they bid the forest below goodbye as they disappeared back into the blue fog. Little did anyone realize what other craft lurked around within.


	5. Chapter 5

Other than the sky-locked lightning storms and blueness distinct from anything else nearby, there really wasn't anything special about the fog. And fortunately, Nimiya and Valese had rested long enough to navigate the ship just as promised. Vehicular travel naturally expressed different faults from traveling on a Digimon (or in this case, Digimon spirit). For one, lightning bolts hardly caused significant damage, if any at all. Secondly, it defied any portals around and just passed through them like mud puddles. But whereas the spirits of Kinhamon and Iromon hauled the others in seconds flat, the spaceship moved a tad slower. Days, possibly even weeks would pass before they landed on the universe's main digital terra firma.

Not surprisingly, more trouble loomed upon their present horizon. Another spacecraft with conical form had broken the fog's outer surface for an exploration mission. Its crew had already spotted the digidestined if not vice versa. Masses of blue, yellow, and gold eyes observed things curiously. "Sensors indicate eight organic figures aboard that vessel," one member announced.

"Possibly the same collection detected hours earlier," another guessed, "Before then, the mainframe safeguards transmitted a warning signal involving the unrelenting Iromon and Kinhamon phantasm programs."

"If our hard drives are not riddled with errors, the craft contains the appropriate human avatars for the trinkets we obtained recently as well as precedentedly," a third one chimed, "Shall we strike?"

"Negative," the second replied, "According to appearances, they are bypassing us by one-half mile and counting. Directions will shift so that they may filch trinkets, undoubtedly. We will allow their entry and execute imprisonment."

In the meantime, those words came true as the digidestined caught a blurry sight of the opposing vehicle. All D-Tectors pointed out the spirits being held within. Valese had every right being slightly nervous since she and Nimiya barely saw this fog the first time around but kept firm at setting a new course. Then she put the ship on autopilot and joined the others for a quick dinner. Restoration of the entire rig provided all with enough foodstuffs, water, and fuel. Valese, Tomoki, Izumi, Kouichi, and Junpei amusingly watched the remaining three make burgers.

During the Chamelemon's kidnapping of that father Burgermon, Takuya and Kouji made it a long-established fact what horrible cooks they were. Bokomon and Neemon suffered the most with no one else to test the poorly assembled creations. Nimiya recalled a similar experience not long before getting her hand scarred. Now it seemed time saw improvements with the trio's dishes. Various ingredients and tools covered the counter. Nimiya busied herself by lopping mushrooms all the while cooking a boneless chicken breast on a portable grill. On the stove's left side, Takuya flipped his steak around as he spiced it up little by little. And on the right side, Kouji stirred up fried lettuce and onion bits before quickly looking over his shoulder. "Say, Nimiya, what're the mushrooms for?"

"My chicken burger, of course," she answered, "I like mine with cheese, lettuce, tomato, and plenty of mushrooms."

"Mushrooms in a burger, huh?" Takuya said, "That's a new one."

"Not really. I discovered it in a restaurant Mom, Dad, Valese, and I visited once. But I tell ya, I can't find a decent sandwich like this one anywhere in this universe."

"There's an idea," Kouji realized, "That's just what my veggie burger needs. Wouldja kindly toss a few my way?" And she gladly complied.

"You've all gotten unbelievably better at cooking," Izumi complimented, "I can only imagine how glad Bokomon, Neemon, and the Burgermon might be right now."

"Thanks, Izumi," Takuya replied.

"And if not, we could always use your failed recipes as weapons," Junpei joked.

"How so?" Tomoki asked.

"Stuff 'em down enemies' mouths and give 'em weak stomachs for easier battles." Whereas everyone else laughed, the cooking trio bore irked expressions.

"Good one," Kouichi admitted. Kouji and Takuya looked to each other momentarily while shaking their heads.

"Laugh it up while you still can," Nimiya dryly retorted, "Because I actually tried that myself once. Remember all the unfortunate planets Matrixmon blew up? Well, on one of 'em, I showed off my improved cooking skills in the wrong place at the wrong time. My only means of escape was giving a spoiled Kumbhiramon the worst stomachache of its life."

"Aw, c'mon," Valese said, "He was only joking."

"But we aren't."

"Sheesh," Izumi added, "Why so touchy?"

"Do we really hafta answer?" Kouji said, meaning every word, "I'll bet you four weren't always such hot-shot chefs yerselves." The quintet stared at them half-shocked and half-amazed in silence for about a minute, unable to deny that last statement. Even though they'd participated in helping their parents prepare large meals back home, wasted ingredients and ruined dishes accompanied such nifty skills. And for those who attended cooking classes earlier in life, bad grades made the expenses no smaller.

"Wow," Tomoki finally spoke, "All this time we thought you were just clowns when it came to the kitchen. Never guessed you felt that way."

"Well, we do," Takuya said. Turning off both appliances, the three placed their ingredients on nearby plates and assembled the sandwiches. "How close are the spirits?"

Eight eyes lay upon the D-Tectors. Valese also ran back to the cockpit and compared all maps, digivices and main computer, to what she saw through the windshield. "Well, we've still got a mile left. It might be trap, but it looks like whoever's piloting that bigger ship is allowing us inside. I can definitely make out a runway."

"Then we better eat up," Kouji announced. He, Nimiya, and Takuya quickly finished assembling their burgers and feasted like royalty. With no time to cook anything for themselves, the others made do with cold ham and cheese sandwiches. For a bonus, a special machine that cleaned dishes without using soap or water cut cleanup time short. All anyone really had to do was put away food. After that, the kids buckled up in their seats as the sisters navigated into the larger ship nicely. With no visible weaponry, a door on the larger ship opened like somebody expected their arrival. Little fuss stirred, other than landing the shuttle and the door closing behind. Even when the eight dismounted, anything besides attack brewed up.

"Well, that was fun," Kouichi said, "What next?" Although they suspected foul play, nobody discovered cameras catching their every move. Back in the control room, the pilots carried out the second task.

"Activate scrambling ray," a voice commanded. With the push of a button, invisible jamming waves filled all rooms and affected only the D-Tectors' maps. Whoever ran this gargantuan space station assumed the digivices useless without any decent enough Digimon spirits or even no spirits at all. Iguanamon and BlackIguanamon were good fighters, but their strength paled in comparison, right? D-Tector maps on hand, faulty or authentic, the digidestined already knew they must enter more doors directly ahead. Then came hallways jutting out in opposite directions.

"Well, we're off to a good start so far," Izumi said, "But which way do we go?" As it turned out, the scrambling ray inspired yet another group split. Takuya, Izumi, and Valese's D-Tectors pinpointed their spirits being down the left hallway. And of course, the others had to proceed down the right. Even though the digidestined really didn't like going through with it, at least both factions contained someone already wielding a spirit. "The spirit of Kazemon's over this way."

"Yeah, same with Agunimon," Takuya said.

"And Kinhamon!" Valese said.

"Fancy that," Kouji commented, "The rest of us gotta go the opposite way." He motioned to the two older kids going down the left, a sly look having returned to his, Kouichi, and Junpei's faces. "You two are practically stuck on each other."

Valese, Tomoki, and Nimiya refrained from joining in. Glaring and blushing, Takuya and Izumi were angrier than a tyrannosaurus losing a good meal. Honestly, why did the two other older boys have to keep taunting them like this? Izumi felt too upset to reply, but Takuya wasn't. "Oh, what's with you guys anymore?"

"Nothing," Junpei lied, rolling his eyes innocently, "We better get a move on. Those spirits won't wait all day." Several steps in both directions, he and Kouji couldn't help shooting a sly look one last time. Further blushing on Takuya and Izumi's faces made them wish they hadn't caught it. Plus, no one guessed how close their spirits really were. Agunimon, Lobomon, Kazemon, Beetlemon, Kumamon, Kinhamon, and Iromon statuettes typically lay behind the section of wall facing those doors. In fact, a half-circle room full of electrical equipment (no doubt the ship's core) kept them in force fields similar to that from where the kids originally uncovered them. Ooh, so close and yet so far!

However, Nimiya's thoughts momentarily lay elsewhere. Judging by blushes on two certain faces, could she have missed something? "Junpei? Kouji? Kouichi? What exactly was that all about back there?"

"Whadda you mean?" Kouji responded.

"You know: the blushing, teasing, funny faces, etc. Not to mention how much those two cling to each other. That crack I made about them going steady was only a joke. Are they a couple for real?"

"Not yet," Tomoki answered, "See, Takuya's got a crush on Izumi, but he's too shy to say so. And from what I've seen, I think she feels the same way. Kouji, Junpei, and Kouichi were gonna bring 'em together today until I…er…ruined it."

"Yeah, we'll just pick up from where we left off once the mission's done," Kouji said, "By the way, did we ever tell you Junpei once had his own crush on Izumi?"

"Nope. Valese and I only learned so much about you five. Or six."

"It's true," Junpei admitted, "But that was a long time ago, and things change." He looked towards Tomoki. "You sure got a way with words, kiddo."

"Of course," Tomoki said, "We younger kids are getting smarter all the time. I can understand what it's like when two people fall in love."

"Sweet," Kouichi concluded, "I guess we can also refrain from any more teasing."

The hallway ran around the ship in a horseshoe-shaped ring with a red circle upon the floor and ceiling at both ends. Back in the other direction, the other three kids found themselves surrounded on both sides by two almost endless rows of closets. However, they needed not waste effort and time inspecting every single one upon coming across their first spirit. Unlike previous doors, these ones opened the old-fashioned way: either by holding up a lever or turning a knob. According to the room behind, the closets extended enough to compose the rest of the interior circle (at least for this floor). But nobody cared wondering why certain areas appeared more low-tech than others. "Sure goes on," Takuya noted, inspecting the emptiness within, "Still, if Agunimon's inside here, I guess I'll see you later."

"Why not right now?" Valese asked.

"Well, shouldn't you girls hunt down your spirits? We'll need all the firepower we can get."

"But we also needa stick together," Izumi reminded, "Valese already has a spirit, even if it's just at the Rookie stage. If any of us gets ambushed, she can come to the rescue."

Takuya admired Izumi's beaming face for three seconds before he returned the emotion. "Okay, if you say so. I'll be back before you know I'm gone." I love that smile, the two older ones thought as the goggle boy disappeared into the dark. This closet didn't seem like much, rather a storage space for spare or discarded engine parts. No light other than what the hallway offered filled within; although it hardly stretched that far, Takuya wouldn't need much since he also used his instincts.

Meanwhile, the other five finally reached the right-sided teleporter. Junpei's D-Tector pinpointed Beetlemon's spirit being located in a room on the same side as the hangar but within a separate room one floor higher. With no stairs or elevators, they might have to risk possible consequences of using foreign means. "What's this?" Tomoki wondered, "Think it's a trap?"

"It might be," Junpei said, "Maybe I read or watch too much science fiction, but it looks like some kind of teleporter."

"Or a trapdoor or hidden elevator," Kouji guessed, "Whatever it is, I hope it leads up."

"So do I, bro," Kouichi agreed.

"I'll gladly take my chances," Nimiya abruptly decided, "Anything's better than staying on this floor finding nothing." The boys gasped the very second she stepped onto the red circle. Shock and uncertainty filled the air temporarily without so much as a laser light coming out. Still, everyone felt something would definitely happen at any given second. Nimiya tapped one foot, marched in place, and even jumped three times. Hallways as lighted as this required microscopic cameras; the kids knew somebody was watching but couldn't find proof. Fed up with inactivity, the pilots acted once more.

"Initiate teleportation sequence," the same previous voice commanded, "Relocate subjects to revitalization facility." The push of another button made the red circle glow orange. Suspicions confirmed, the boys stepped back as Nimiya began fizzling out like a projection image.

"You win, Junpei," she said, "It is a teleporter." She disappeared completely, most likely sent into deeper confines. Tomoki made the same decision next.

"C'mon, let's follow her!" He, Kouichi, Kouji, and Junpei stepped into the same position and disappeared as well. They all landed in what would've been the ship's cafeteria except for the many electrical sockets and extension cords. Dimmed eyes on various mechanical figures signified they must be in stasis lock or other. But the quartet did a double take at immediately recognizing these figures. Nobody had problems about Digimon other than their spirits aboard, but it was who exactly that stunned them most. Another bundle of those same turquoise-armed computer robots and half-metal chameleons took no notice of the digidestined. "Oh, no! More soldiers like we encountered this morning!"

"Now that we have our D-Tectors, we can shed more light on them," Kouji said, "The chameleons are called Cybormon. A blast of yellow energy from their robotic right arms composes a deadly attack called Supercharge. Copy lives up to its name: It allows them to take on another Digimon's attack at random."

"And the other robots are Computramon," Junpei added, "Their Compact Grenade is a bunch of CDs that are anything but harmless or musical. Plus, that blue flash of light they fired at us earlier is known as System Crash."

"Cybormon is usually seen with Computramon, and vice versa," Nimiya threw in, "Definitely not fake. They must be meditating right now, 'cause all the cords are strung around. Huh. And my parents thought **I** was untidy."

"Not to mention we're completely surrounded," Kouichi pointed out, "We could escape through that doorway, but there's no telling if the Cybormon and Computramon are alert or not. They might ambush us."

"They'll ambush us either way," Junpei said, "That teleporter must've malfunctioned; my D-Tector tells me Beetlemon's three floors below and on the opposite side." Suddenly, new eerie glows filled the room as the Champions' eyes lit up. Crowding into a circle, the kids prepared for another fight. Kouji, Junpei, and Tomoki cared little about having no spirits; Nimiya cared little about wielding what the soldiers considered a 'weak' spirit. One Cybormon and one Computramon stepped closer and spoke for their crew.

"Greetings, human programs," the Cybormon spoke, "Static clouded the transmission, but the CPU successfully warned us of your presence."

"Well, you can just tell her we declined a hundred times already," Kouichi retorted, "She should get over herself."

"How'd you all get out this far?" Kouji asked, "Isn't Matrixmon satisfied enough?"

"Negative," the one Computramon answered, "Our mission commenced three decades ago. This spacecraft defies millions of years' worth of trekking required by subordinate models: the CPU's own design. She entrusted us a unique responsibility to unveil the revelations within this azure haze, codenamed the Anonymity Blanket. When you surpassed its surface, it reawakened an ancient concern: Digimon phantasms progress at velocities which perplex our hardware to this cycle."

"I am gonna get a headache from all this mumbo-jumbo," Junpei complained, "Speak clearly, for cryin' out loud!"

"It's no use," Nimiya said, "I told the originals the same thing way back when."

"Your cooperation is advisable," the main Cybormon said, "Peace, enhanced talents, and the loss of all anguish upon Digital Earth await your decision. As a bonus, you will also receive high honors for unveiling the enigma strengthening a phantasm's velocity. In lay terms, you must share how you arrived here quicker than us. Should you refuse either offer, we will be forced to terminate you."

The digidestined looked to each other before glaring at the opposition. For such 'superior' beings, the Cybormon and Computramon obviously hadn't a clue who they wanted to mess with. "Then don't let it force you!" Tomoki shot, "Even if I did know, I'd rather die than tell you meanies!"

"Peace?" Kouji added, grabbing an unplugged and detached cord, "Like you really know what peace is."

"Harmonious relations," another Cybormon defined, "Freedom from disputes."

"Compact Grenade!"

"Supercharge!"

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …BlackIguanamon!" CDs and yellow blasts zipped about without hurting the Champion-level Digimon around. Once again, the kids narrowly escaped injury as Nimiya took the battle's full brunt head-on. Still, the androids felt extra confident with the odds in their favor. "Nocturnal Needle!" Small javelins of black energy matched every opposing firepower evenly. Metal slabs had covered up the sockets to prevent incurred damage. Some Computramon put away most but not all cords and joined the fight afterward. BlackIguanamon's experience defied her size: The bad ones could hardly tell whether they were fighting one or one hundred.

Kouji wasn't keen on using an extension cord for a weapon like he did wood or metal poles, but it was better than nothing. Socket ends gouged eyes (bionic or squishy) belonging to weakened Cybormon and the glass surfaces on weakened Computramon screens. That's basically how the plan went: As BlackIguanamon exhausted each crew member, the boys did whatever they could to finish the job. However, the midnight-colored Rookie soon demonstrated her own signs of fatigue. "We can't keep this up forever!" Junpei said

"BlackIguanamon's getting pretty tired!" Kouichi added, "Shouldn't we go find our spirits?"

"There're too many blocking our way!" Kouji said, "Hope Takuya, Valese, and Izumi are having it easier than us!"

"Hope they find us soon!" Tomoki chimed.

At that very moment, Takuya finally gave up searching out his spirit in the closet. Izumi and Valese helped dust him off as he joined them back in the hallway. "Well, that's that. I really thought I'd find Agunimon in here."

"No worries, Takuya," Izumi assured, "Maybe it's actually one floor below or above."

"Could be," Valese said, "Call it a hunch, but I can't help feeling we're going in the wrong direction. And I don't see any way up or down." But before either of them decided what to do next, a new orange flash filled their hallway's end. So the trio slinked further on. Reaching the red circle, they kept ever wary while squatting down for inspection. No traps sprung up just yet.

"I wonder what it is?" Izumi said. Hesitation dominated as each child ran a hand across it.

"Sure feels warm," Takuya commented. That's when the same eerie sensation overcame them. Whereas the second sent their friends onto a higher floor, a third button-pressing dispatched the three several floors lower. A new, stone hallway with a temple-like theme spiraled all the way down to the ship's very bottom. "Okay, where did we go?"

"The wrong direction, of course," Valese stated, "I knew it all along!"

"Shh, I hear something!" Izumi announced.

Judging by their surroundings, the three stood somewhere in the middle. Rumbling and rolling sounds appeared to emanate from the very top. "You're right," Takuya said, "I'd rather not stick around to find out what." He instinctively grabbed the girls' hands, and all three fled for their lives. Izumi and Valese quickly glanced back to partially see a giant silver marble rolling their way. Then they immediately increased running speed, almost dragging Takuya. "Hey, wait up!"

"Pick up the pace, Takuya!" Valese shouted.

"Great!" Izumi cried, "Now I know what it feels like being inside a pinball machine!" Unfortunately, the marble rolled faster than any of them and so gained on their tails little by little. Things especially looked grim back in the 'cafeteria'. BlackIguanamon gave in to her fatigue as she reverted into Nimiya. The Computramon and Cybormon beat up Kouji, Tomoki, Kouichi, and Junpei pretty badly before taking all four children prisoner. And yet, as if possessed, the smaller ship must've heard its own crew call out for aid.

"Cold And Clammy!" a familiar voice called out. The smaller rig's guns poured out a gusher of snow. Only those in the control room got startled since they were the only ones watching.

"This does not compute!" a Computramon screeched. Ironically, the glitter wasn't restricted to flooding only the hangar. No amount of effort excluded cracks through which the strange material squeezed through. It filled the space station quicker than the scrambling ray, practically diluting it. Controls, semiconductors, and all other hardware got clogged up. The androids couldn't remove it from the ship's internal systems or even their own. Such enabled a convenient escape for Kouji, Junpei, Tomoki, Kouichi and Nimiya into an even larger room. It halted the giant marble stopped only inches from Takuya, Izumi, and Valese. With their cages severed, the spirits became glitter themselves and went straight for the quartet. The trio in the stone hallway also got teleported there.

"Our human spirits!" Tomoki declared, "Plus the two lizards we saw earlier!"

"The bipedal chameleon is Kinhamon, the Champion form of Iguanamon," Valese explained, "And the snake with dragonfly wings is BlackIguanamon's digivolution, Iromon."

"But how'd they escape without us finding them?" Izumi wondered, "And how'd me, you, and Takuya get in this room?"

"Who cares?" Kouji said, "Let's stop yapping and start scanning!" Standing in front of their respective spirits, the digidestined held up their D-Tectors like remote controls. No one paid heed to anything else even when more Cybormon and Computramon stampeded in. It was a relatively slow process, but their patience paid off once again. Now they had nothing to fear.

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …Agunimon!"

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …Lobomon!"

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …Kazemon!"

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …Beetlemon!"

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …Kumamon!"

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! ...Loewemon!"

"Execute! Digivolution! …Kinhamon!"

"Execute! Digivolution! …Iromon!"

Rather than take up arms right away, the androids paused in a mix of awe and confusion. "Grainy substance indeterminate," yet another Cybormon said, "It has somehow withdrawn the heptad programs from within the central engine room. Actions supposedly deemed impossible."

"Kinhamon at your service! Like Cybormon, I don't decide what other attacks my Copy takes on. But wait until I fry you up with my Shock Eyes!"

"I'm Iromon. The reason why I fit in here so easily is because I'm able to adjust my length however I wish. My attacks are Rainbow Spiral and Rainbow Wing."

"Y'know, you bad girls are way too close-minded to understand the more bizarre things in life," Kazemon shot out, "Fortunately, your counterparts and we five Legendary Warriors are only happy to show you what we can really do."

"Long process the technological!" all Cybormon yelled, "Supercharge!"

"System Crash!"

The digidestined had a much easier time balancing between dodging the blasts and retaliating. "Pyro Tornado!"

"Lobo Kendo!"

"Hurricane Wave!"

"Proton Slam!"

"Frozen Tundra!"

"Shadow Meteor!" Having eliminated at least one-third of the androids, the five recoiled at the sight of dissolved Digimon. They'd been informed about this before, but the fact that every previous opponent expressed Fractal Code when defeated made a lot more sense.

"Compact Grenade!"

"Rainbow Wing!" Giving off the impression of too many blended paints, Iromon's wings not only broke the disks upon impact but also dashed more Computramon in their sides. More bits of raw data went off into the unknown.

"Copy!"

"Copy! …Dark Deluge!" Twenty Cybormon brandished all sorts of indeterminate attacks on Kinhamon, who 'borrowed' one from MarineDevimon in turn. A tsunami of black water drowned countered those attacks and drowned the cyborg chameleons. For the time being, everything apparently went better than the digidestined last remembered. But unlike the station itself, however, clogging effects on crew members (or soldiers, or however they referred to themselves) were only temporary. For every android Digimon the digidestined purged, seven or eight took her place.

"Keep it up, team!" Agunimon cheered, "We can't let 'em overtake us!"

"No problem!" Iromon said, "I'm taking out the trash!" She paused as another android parcel joined the struggle. "But it just keeps piling up!"

"We need a new plan!" Loewemon said, "They're crawling outta the woodwork!"

"Tempest Twist!" After whacking away more androids, no matter how far or close, Kazemon couldn't help quickly admiring her work. "Am I good or what! Oof!" A Cybormon ambushed her, only to get flung into a wall the very next moment. Kazemon then picked herself back up before rejoining the fight. "And stay off!"

"We already got what we came for!" Kumamon realized, "Shouldn't we head back to our own ship?"

"Can't!" Kinhamon called back, "There are too many blocking all doorways!"

"Then let's block back!" Beetlemon announced. He ripped an entire ribbon of floor off and jammed it against all but three doorways. Agunimon's Pyro Darts attack melted it onto the walls. Desperate to bring the kids down, the androids couldn't prevent greater damage on what lay beneath. Flaming internal circuitry tripped an alarm.

"Igneous impairment!" a Computramon distressed, "Backup assistance immediately needed!" A tenth sequence of the android Digimon hurriedly entered to handle the fire. Those still behind the blocked doors pounded without stopping even for a minute. Near the ceiling, Iromon with the others on her back watched in amusement while planning their next move.

"Something must've infected our D-Tectors before," Lobomon noted, "Whatever it was, that strange powder got rid of it. Our ship is four floors below at southeast. But I can't find a shortcut."

"I can," Iromon announced, "Hang on tight." After her passengers gained a steady grip, the winged serpentine Digimon flew in circles around the ceiling. Faster and faster she moved, until all eight looked even more blurry than her Rainbow Wing attack. Partly staring up in more awe, the androids had a problem bigger than the digidestined's escape.

"Halo effect fanning ignition!" a Cybormon demanded, "Cease and desist immediately!" Come the last second, Iromon quit spinning as she and her load busted right through the floor. No matter how reinforced, lower decks couldn't stand the heat and pressure either. At the bottom, they landed in an extended closet on the right side of the left-going hallway. Since there was no telling whether or not it bordered the hangar, the group instead went forward. Neither locked doors nor further resistance hindered them from escaping. Though, it took quite a bit of physical exertion to rip off the second door they'd entered the entire time and reach their ship. Fortunately, it hadn't suffered any damage during their absence.

"Made it!" Kazemon said, "Though, how're we gonna get out? That larger door looks too strong for our attacks or the ship's weapons."

"I'm working on it," Iromon reassured. Her spinning motion took time the androids simply wouldn't allow, however. Valese and Tomoki, having reverted back, got to work starting up the group's vessel. Kazemon, Agunimon, Lobomon, Loewemon, and Beetlemon kept persistent Cybormon and Computramon at bay. When the right moment came, Iromon successfully bashed the larger door off its hinges into blue unknown. Beetlemon took the ripped-off smaller door and held it upright for another welding from Agunimon. The older kids then reverted and joined the younger pair for escaping. Neither Valese nor Nimiya plotted a course until the ship broke surface.

Inside the space station, the androids conjured up a second plan of their own as the remainder reentered the control room. They'd somehow put out the fire but paid Iromon's damage no heed. Come to think of it, none even minded the casualties. "Put primary objectives on hold," a Cybormon commanded, "Initiate separation sequence." Laying at the topmost level, a pair of pulled levers detached the control room from everything else. What remained of the cone didn't last; lightning combined with the abandoned portion's rate of velocity degraded it to dust.

"Nice going, Junpei," Kouji complimented, "Your quick thinking saved our tails."

"Thanks. Glad ya think so."

"We're on a roll," Kouichi said, "We got our Human Spirits. Wonder where we'll find our Beast Spirits?"

"Feels like time's starting all over," Valese added, yawning and stretching, "Anybody besides me need a nap?" After the sisters put the ship on autopilot again, the whole group fell sound asleep without question.

Note: Ooh, how many must I put in here? First of all, forget what I said in the first chapter: I apologize that this whole story seems rushed. Secondly, I apologize for the slow updates. Blasted writer's block!


	6. Chapter 6

"They're closing in fast!" Nimiya announced. The digidestined received a rude awakening early the next morning (at least, if they could call it a morning). Remaining Cybormon and Computramon had transformed what remained of their space station into a smaller apparatus and immediately wreaked vengeance. At both ships' velocity, the following chase defied the heroes' head start, no matter what the distance between. Only the sisters saw much of anything since no one else had windows to look through, though. And any existing windows showed mostly what stood ahead rather than behind. Had they been going slower, someone might've spirit-evolved and fought back.

"Whew, what a trip!" Tomoki declared, "I feel like I'm in one of those games where you use these little jets at the bottom of a screen to shoot down enemy aircraft and so forth!"

"Yeah, but we're 'it'!" Kouji agreed.

Between staying on-course and dodging enemy fire, something interesting caught Valese's attention. Yet another celestial body in the digital cosmos happened along the way. She just barely made out a seemingly uninhabited environment: sand, mountains, plateaus, mesas, plains, and mild vegetation. She wouldn't need a telescope to understand how useful this planet might be. Did any other choice exist? The chase was also exhausting the fuel supply quicker than they'd reach Digital Earth, and they'd need all the fuel they could get. "Hey, Nimiya! Let's take our ship down low!"

"Are you sure about that?"

"Positive! I can barely see it, but the planet below seems to be a wasteland! We should be able to lose them somehow!"

"But we've never even been there! Who knows what we might encounter!"

"Anything's better than running out of fuel and drifting off into a black hole! And if we think hard enough, it'll at least give us a chance to land and spirit-evolve!"

"Well, okay, if you say so!" Anyone with headgear held on to both that and the arms of their seats as the ship dive-bombed through yet another new atmosphere. The Computramon and Cybormon said nothing and casually followed suit. Whereas the digidestined's vessel required all energy directed towards the shield systems, extra-thick layers of glass and metal kept the androids' ship from burning up. The planet's surface loomed ever closer until Valese decided they'd gone close enough. Rocky pillars dotted by hardy grasses surprised occupants inside both ships. Standing possibly two or three miles ahead, someone stood behind a relatively short pillar watching and planning. Nobody expected the following voice or the accompanying attack.

"Nuclear Laser!" A skinny laser of yellow and green incised the left wing tip off the digidestined's space ship. Due to unbalanced weight, it rocked back and forth while losing altitude.

"What just happened?" Izumi wondered, "I heard something get sliced."

"That was our left wing tip," Valese informed, "We're coming in for a rough landing, so brace yourselves!"

Unfortunately for the androids, a second laser allowed them no such chances for reacting quickly enough. It punctured their vehicle and sent the poor saps spinning like a pencil in a sharpener. Whoever or whatever fired off obviously timed both assaults right. Plus, the controls had become slow. "Error 630!" a Computramon said, "Modem disconnected due to hardware failure!" As it bounced across the rugged landscape, it crumpled so badly that it jammed shut all escape hatches. But the commotion didn't stop even when they impacted against the next mesa. All eyes glanced towards six iron points ripping off the roof; no one spoke for five seconds.

"Digimon identified as…" one of the Cybormon began.

"Fire Blast II!" the figure interrupted. In fresher condition, the android Digimon would've stood a higher chance against whoever loomed over their heads. But it allowed them no recovery time as it burned crew and ship to a crisp. The odd creature stomped away while the androids dissolved and the ship exploded.

Meanwhile, having landed roughly but safely within an isolated clump of trees, the digidestined stepped out into the open just in time to hear the fireworks. From the sounds of things, it must've occurred only half a mile away. "What was that?" Junpei wondered.

"Beats me," Takuya shrugged, "Maybe the other ship crashed pretty hard, but I can't tell for sure." As soon as they'd all dismounted, a new sound filled the air. Pebbles bounced around at sudden booming while each child nearly lost his or her balance just standing upright. It might've been an earthquake or some battle, but they placed their bets on quite a large wild animal.

"Someone or something is definitely headed our way," Kouichi said, "But it feels like the sounds are coming from all directions."

"No, they aren't," Izumi disagreed, "They're coming from right in front of us." As she spoke, a large head surpassed the growth as a new possible source of troubles surprised them. Body and limbs completed a silver-skinned therapod dinosaur who started out by glancing back with the same curiosity. Red, blue, and gray wiring running across tail and torso; metal fingers, toes, palms, knees, mandible, nose, and horn; blue eyes; gray markings on its face; gray spikes on the back; and segmented chest extensions around both shoulders and the right thigh deemed it quite a dangerous sight to behold.

"That's MetalTyrannomon, DarkTyrannomon's machine-strong Ultimate form," Tomoki analyzed, "Her attacks of Fire Blast II and Nuclear Laser will burn someone's skin off."

"I don't like the sound of that," Nimiya said, "I sure hope she already had a filling breakfast."

"Well, I can always make room for extra snacks," MetalTyrannomon responded. To start out, neither side made a first move but rather stared hard with determined looks in their eyes. The dinosaur's eyes then appeared to widen in recognition. After bending down and sniffing the digidestined, her next words expressed a sense of humility. "Oh, my mistake. You're Ophanimon's Chosen Children, correct?"

"Yeah, we are," Junpei stated, "We were trying to elude our pursuers but got shot down."

"I apologize again. I'm pretty overprotective of my territory."

"Did you see where the ship that chased us disappeared to?" Kouichi inquired

"Surely. I even destroyed it and the dirty crooks inside. Cybormon and Computramon, I believe.

"Are you sure?" Valese asked.

"Yep. They dissolved right before my very eyes instead of expelling Fractal Code. Never seen a Digimon do that in my entire life."

"We'll still need the tip of our ship's wing, right?" Izumi said. The sisters nodded yes when she faced them. "Um, MetalTyrannomon, did you see where a triangular bit of metal landed?"

"That I did. It's someplace over to the right. I'll be right back." After MetalTyrannomon disappeared back into the trees, the digidestined noticed their D-Tectors beeping. No jamming signals existed within an eight-mile radius this time since Valese and Nimiya recognized everything they'd all previously zoomed over. Detection of something else important pointed out how well-timed of a decision the younger one executed when choosing this planet.

"Well, so much for coincidence," Kouichi said, "We only landed to lose those creeps, but who could've guessed we'd find our Beast Spirits here?"

"And Ultimates," Nimiya pointed out.

"Human Spirits and Champions," Kouji recited, "Beast Spirits and Ultimates. Is there some kind of connection here between opposing entities?"

"Funny you should mention that," Valese answered, "There is a connection. See, Armor and Hybrid are two separate levels from regular digivolution chains. If classified along the same terms, we may as well imagine your Human Spirits as Champions and your Beast Spirits as Ultimates. Fusions would be considered Megas. Of course, a Digimon's level doesn't always determine its strength."

The others took in this information with great intrigue. For all of her knowledge, they might assume the little brunette secretly held an extensive book like what Bokomon kept at his side. "If Bokomon were here, he'd be jealous!" Tomoki declared, "But where do EmperorGreymon, MagnaGarurumon, and Susanoomon fit in?"

"And Flamemon?" Takuya added.

"You've probably heard there's no level beyond Mega. Instead, the Mega level splits into three separate phases. Regular fusions like Aldamon and Beowolfmon are equivalent to the first phase; EmperorGreymon and MagnaGarurumon the second; and Susanoomon the third. As for Flamemon, he's definitely Agunimon's Rookie form. Under proper conditions, Lobomon would de-digivolve into some wolf-headed kid named Strabimon. Don't know about the other Warriors' Rookies or Fusions."

"Wow," Junpei commented, "How about Armors?"

"Some believe they're a division of Champions: co-Champion level. Not the case. Armor Digimon vary in comparison to Champions and Ultimates. Golden Armors like GoldVeedramon and Magnamon are a bit stronger but still Armors nonetheless. Though, if there were a level beyond Mega, Matrixmon would fit the bill."

"I'm back!" MetalTyrannomon announced, holding the wing tip in one hand, "Did I miss anything?"

"Yeah, Valese knows more than us about our own spirits," Izumi answered, "I feel kinda silly."

"That's okay," Kouji said, "We gotta go find more right this instant. According to the map, they're on a mountaintop far northwest of here. It's in the shape of a bear's head, the only one around. We can't miss it."

"A bear's head?" MetalTyrannomon wondered, "Hm…" She squinted as the kids held their digivices up as high as they could possibly muster. Possessing fine eyesight, the mechanical archosaur caught every essential detail. "Better tread carefully. Some ominous group landed there a few years back and dug up six powerful trinkets plus two recent. They keep them under heavy guard even now so that nobody steals them to become stronger."

"More of Matrixmon's servants, no doubt," Kouichi said, "Would it be too much trouble if you guarded our ship until we return?"

"Anything for the Great Angels' little knights in shining armor. I'll even repair my damage during your absence."

"Thanks!" the group said. Afterward, Nimiya immediately became Iromon so the others could hitch another easy ride towards their latest destination. It wasn't long before they reached an outpost both close and high enough to spy on the guards. Some white-colored, plastic electric cylinder stood two feet tall with the spirits in plain sight. Nimiya (or Iromon, since she remained a Digimon in case of emergency) obviously guessed right: Ten of Matrixmon's followers – five lustrous chameleons and five square-fingered computer robots – stood as restless sentries against the elements.

"They look like Cybormon and Computramon, only a bit different," Tomoki noted.

"Those are their Ultimate forms," Junpei explained, "The monochrome chameleons are Zirconimon. Save for their eyes, they lose all color when they digivolve from the Champion stage. We've seen their Negatron Laser, but I wonder what Cyborg Luster can do?"

"It's a repeat of Iguanamon's Skin Shed," Valese chimed, "But anyway, the computers are called SuperComputramon. Their Peripheral Energy Drain sucks power out of anything or anyone those cords on their heads attach to. And I'm guessing you've already experienced Deadly Keyboard firsthand."

"You guessed right," Takuya said, "For all the sneaking we've done, think they suspect anything?"

"I wouldn't doubt it," Iromon stated, "Matrixmon's a very determined individual. All her forms boast pretty good sight and hearing."

On the bear-headed mountain, one SuperComputramon felt disturbed and so gazed around the landscape. She didn't catch Izumi sneaking a peek, but her eyes darted towards that same rock. "Hmm…"

"What disturbance congests your sensors?" another SuperComputramon queried.

"It may be a fluke, but I am detecting a minor and isolated concentration of human data posterior to that rock formation." All twenty eyes faced the same direction, with no one else receiving the same signals.

"I detect nothing," a Zirconimon announced, "Perhaps you did download a fluke."

"Nevertheless, I will not initiate ignorance," the one computer Digimon decided, "Should the expected human units unveil themselves, only their termination matters to the CPU."

"They're expecting us, alright," Izumi announced, having withdrawn her head, "One of the SuperComputramon told her friends something important. I don't believe she saw me, however, and the others appear to care less."

"But that still doesn't change the problem," Kouji said, "How can we move in closer?"

"Doesn't look like we can," Junpei said, "We're better off staying right here a day and studying their positions. They've gotta shift sooner or later, right?"

"Nope," Valese countered, "Not only are they strong, but also capable of holding one position almost indefinitely. Even if we waited an entire year, they'd remain the same way."

"Hold up," Takuya realized, "Valese, couldn't you become Kinhamon and use Cherubimon's Storm Of Judgement to short-circuit them temporarily if not permanently?"

"Possibly. But I already told you Kinhamon's Copy attack uses something at random. Neither I nor the Digimon decides what's used."

"Okay, how about this?" Kouichi chimed, "What about when Kinhamon rides on Iromon? How can it affect ten Ultimates?"

"I'm guessing it would just barely destroy only two," Iromon answered, "The others would remain standing with most if not all stunned. Plus, that technique requires a lot of power when used to extremes. We only pour on the heavy pressure in the direst situations, and this one's looking pretty dire. Whatever you've got planned, I'm listening."

An hour passed by, and the one SuperComputramon remained ever uncomfortable. She didn't take her eyes off the rock for even one second. But if she assumed things correctly, which she did, why hadn't the humans done anything yet? Exactly what were they up to? While she pondered, the group first carefully distanced themselves far enough for Spirit Evolution. Afterward, they defied the androids' superior guarding skills by slinking around the landscape little by little. To start off, the Legendary Warriors settled first for minor disturbances. Agunimon had to time it right with causing a brushfire; catching sight of the flames but not the cause, a Zirconimon joined her one monitor-headed in the suspicion department. "Combustion detected over yonder. Cause unknown."

Once again, all ten androids allowed distraction to overcome them. "Ignition does not simply occur out of nothingness," another Zirconimon said, "Intruders present. No other explanation possible." But that was only a start. Next, standing respectively towards the left and right sides, Beetlemon and Lobomon shot thunder and light straight up to outer space without stopping. Suspicion instantly rang throughout the entire mechanical parcel, no longer limited to just two.

"Restricted luminescence accompanying candid crackling," another SuperComputramon analyzed, "Possible distress signals, but more information is required." Behind the mountain, Kazemon and Loewemon stood across from Beetlemon while conjuring a wedged joint tornado. And on the other side, an ice field courtesy of Kumamon appeared to be spreading. Having seen enough, the android Digimon prepared to eradicate these disturbances if not for a fifth surprise. Iromon levitated two miles high with Kinhamon on her back, and they both glowed red.

"Human presence detected within reverse units!" the first SuperComputramon exclaimed, "My hard drive contains no flukes!"

"Crimson luminescence familiar," a third Zirconimon added, "Volatile on both victims and handlers. Must tread cautiously."

"Deadly Keyboard!"

"Negatron Laser!" Keyboard missiles and white rays bounced off the incoming red fireball. Kinhamon and Iromon exhausted quite a bit of energy, but it paid off at the bottom. As expected, one of each species died from the resulting impact. Three Zirconimon and three SuperComputramon got stunned, but the assault completely missed the remaining pair and the plastic cylinder. After the dizziness passed, all Zirconimon leapt up high in a counterattack. "Cyborg Luster!" White showery blasts decimated surroundings while clashing with the Warriors' disturbances, creating quite a dust cloud.

"If the intruders are listening, your efforts are futile!" a SuperComputramon called out, "Our optic sensors can penetrate this concealment straightforwardly!" But the androids never found the ones responsible even after it cleared. "Resistance will not liberate you! Reveal yourselves so you may receive a lenient welcome!"

"Thunder Fist!"

"Hurricane Wave!"

"Howling Laser!"

"Peripheral Energy Drain!"

"Shadow Lance!"

"Shock Eyes!" Kinhamon, Iromon, and the Legendary Warriors finally discarded all secrecy to once again dish out everything they could upon the opposition. Although they fought well, the androids kept one step ahead. The commotion created quite a mess as it sent the cylinder rolling along an avalanche.

"We gotta get that tube!" Kumamon cried.

"Leave it to me!" Iromon volunteered. The elongated chameleon barely made it wriggling through every blast or rock coming her way. While one of each android pursued, remaining Zirconimon used their Negatron Laser to ensnare the other seven heroes. Iromon couldn't resist looking back helplessly. "Oh no! I'm coming!"

"Never mind us!" Agunimon called back, "Just get that tube and your spirit! You can come back for us!" So a new chase across the wasteland began, with Zirconimon and SuperComputramon only inches away from Iromon's tail. She hunted down the spirits without looking back to face her pursuers. But the included assaults made it a real obstacle course, throwing the container farther and farther. Nine times Zirconimon tried ensnaring Iromon like her comrades did the others, but the snake-like Digimon narrowly dodged it all. SuperComputramon hadn't it easier; her cords instead ended up absorbing Fractal Code from rocks and everything else around. Before anyone knew it, Iromon eluded them momentarily and found the cylinder paused in front of a cliff. She'd have to tread slowly towards the endless crevice or lose the spirits for good.

"Come to Mama," she cooed.

"Negatron Laser!"

"Peripheral Energy Drain!" At last, the androids had Iromon right where they wanted her. Zirconimon got a chance at ensnarement like her brethren. Then SuperComputramon's cords successfully attached to the winged Digimon's forehead and belly and immediately sapped her not just of mere energy but also life force. "The CPU requires we convey the Legendary Warrior programs back to the homepage for conversion. Due to your electronic immunities, however, you and your sister program will perish instead."

Everything began going dark. The lone Champion felt chunks of her data literally separate. Within Iromon, Nimiya saw memories flashing before her very eyes. She recalled seeing the others fall prey to the same confinement only minutes ago. Immunities or not, they'd all end up dead. No! The others were counting on this one Digimon-turned preteen; she couldn't afford to let anyone down! "Must…break…free…"

"This does not compute!" Zirconimon declared. Iromon's entire body glowed mostly red, blue, and purple as she manipulated the entrapment to her advantage. Everything had limits despite claims to the contrary; neither the white ray nor the cords would be able to hold this overload.

"Rainbow Spiral!" Basically, Iromon became her own attack as she twisted free from both hindrances and sent the mechanical pair sprawling. However, it also triggered the right amount of disturbance to send the cylinder plunging into the crevice. "Nooooooooo!" Flung into a panic, Iromon gave chase once more. The androids then stood up overlooking the edge shortly after to frustrate if not eradicate her.

"Deadly Keyboard!"

"Cyborg Luster!" Missiles and blasts gave the crevice a new shape. Rocks, dirt, and minor plant matter fell to their doom, no doubt giving Iromon a rougher time than she could handle. Having absorbed enough of the serpent's essence, SuperComputramon tracked her signal miles and miles down. More seconds passed before the robot's monitor lost that signal.

"Signal dimmed. Intriguing. This marks the first occasion the Iromon program transposed its own battle art. With or without human hosts, organic or technological, no Digimon ever eluded our combined efforts in that manner."

"Retain your alert condition. Perhaps this new battle art means more than our scanners acquired." After the chameleon spoke, the ground and air rumbled only enough for anyone in that vicinity to feel it. A sudden burst of rock from the crevice knocked the androids back. Still glowing multicolored, some energy from Iromon's forehead shaped like a large hand held the cylinder. Holding it straight forward, she pounced on Zirconimon and rammed her a mile across the ground into yet another pillar. Not only did the bad one dissolve, but the impact also cracked the tube open. Back in original form, Nimiya immediately obtained spirit's Ultimate form while the other seven flew off to their owners. SuperComputramon's stomping unsurprisingly demonstrated a rare display of emotions.

"Your untimely demise initiated vast promise. But these acts of resistance coerce me to extend affliction. Peripheral Energy Drain!"

Nimiya leapt aside as the cords absorbed even more Fractal Code from the pillar and broken tube. "Execute! Ultimate Digivolution! …Giganotomon!"

Meanwhile, the other SuperComputramon continued draining the other kids' vitality even after they reverted back. Like their spectacled comrade's previous viewpoint, everything and everyone around seemed to distort. An earthquake must've been underway for all they knew. While it exposed the others' Fractal Code, Valese instead disassembled like her sister earlier. "10.62 seconds remaining," a SuperComputramon announced, "Elimination underway."

"Or…is it?" Izumi muttered. With the digidestined still trapped, the exasperated androids turned and found extremely distorted projections of their Beast Spirits and some unknown Ultimate.

"Cyborg Luster!" The Zirconimon attempted blasting the shadows away, but their blasts went straight through. Before anything else happened, all seven shadows swirled about into the fiercest tornado the planet ever saw in a long time. Everyone flew helplessly as it picked them up and loosened the SuperComputramon's grip on the children. Only after the mountain fully collapsed did calm air finally return.

"Whew!" MetalTyrannomon commented, "They sure know how to party."

"Execute! Beast Spirit Evolution!"

"BurningGreymon!"

"KendoGarurumon!"

"Zephyrmon!"

"MetalKabuterimon!"

"Korikakumon!"

"JagerLoewemon!"

"Execute! Ultimate Digivolution! …Warudramon!"

It was at that moment the androids also recovered from the recoil and shock. Two Zirconimon and a SuperComputramon helped their comrades up out from under the rubble. Like the Kinhamon-Iromon combo attack, this only left them dazed with virtually no visible damage. Both sides received equal surprised at how close they stood across from each other after the dust settled. The digidestined all boasted colossal height, but Warudramon slightly maxed out. She retained the same clothes and tan eyes as her Champion stage, with a fair share of differences. Dark-green skin overshadowed muscled arms and legs, a more dragon-like snout, heavy tail, and a long neck. Small maroon spikes ran across the back of her head, with larger ones running down the middle of the tail. In conclusion, no horns dotted her face. "Ironic," a Zirconimon commented, "Description of events unavailable."

"Looks like Nimiya came through for us!" KendoGarurumon said, "I don't know how she did it, but who cares?"

"Warudramon's back in the game!" Warudramon added, "My attacks of Dragonferno, Dragon Tail, and Muscle Punch express what rage I keep bottled up inside!"

"Deadly Keyboard!"

"Cyborg Luster!"

"Plasma Pods!"

"Howling Star!"

"Ebony Blast!"

"Frozen Arrowheads!"

"Wildfire Tsunami!"

"Dragonferno!"

"Bolo Thunder!" Each fighter was evenly matched with his or her opponent for a short while. Things already heated up enough; barely anything changed when that fourth SuperComputramon got tossed onto the battlefield and a lavender therapod dinosaur stomped into sight. Black tail stripes, brown eyes, three orange spikes running along the back of her head, and purple claws expressed Iromon's Ultimate form.

"Hey, I recognize you!" Korikakumon said while clashing with a Zirconimon, "At least, I think I do!"

"Just don't mistake me for MasterTyrannomon; I'm Giganotomon. I tend to be a docile dinosaur unless threatened. Then I'll blow the competition away with either my Dinosaur Hurricane or Thunder Breath!"

"How informative," the dinosaur's opponent responded dryly, "Deadly Keyboard!"

"Thunder Breath!" KendoGarurumon would've mistaken that blast for one of his own attacks if he had enough time to observe it peacefully. Like all the others, this SuperComputramon's connectors absorbed half while the rest knocked her for a fourth loop. Nothing besides business as usual carried on afterwards. The androids hardly noticed that some digidestined practically dwarfed them since size hardly mattered right now.

"Peripheral Energy Drain!"

"I don't think so!" MetalKabuterimon ceased hold of his opponent's cords and held them in a special position where they wouldn't harm him. "Electron Cannon!" The SuperComputramon struggled at her best, but it was too late. Nothing stopped the cannon on the tank's head from blowing a hole right through her hardware cases. He then tossed the cords aside to dissolve as well.

"Negatron Laser!"

"Avalanche Axes!" Korikakumon's opponent trapped him once again, though not before the mammal's axes slashed her on both hips. And with no one to sustain his cage, the fuzzy creature stood free. KendoGarurumon and another SuperComputramon enacted an age-old trick of charging each other down. Unfortunately for the latter, the former's impact beat her hands down. BurningGreymon and Zephyrmon slammed their opponents of SuperComputramon and Zirconimon (respectively) up against each other's backs.

But that struggle didn't end yet. "Dark Master!" A lion-shaped dark energy projection decimated the two as JagerLoewemon leapt forward. All occurred at the same time, but only Warudramon and Giganotomon's fights stirred up hidden emotional mayhem.

"Cyborg Luster!"

"Deadly Keyboard!" Zirconimon unleashed a final shower after managing to sneak behind Warudramon. While the other blasts administered a hefty physical beating, one licked her hand scar and cut it a tad deeper. The same thing happened when a cube missile simply tapped Giganotomon's scar. Both sisters felt convulsions arising and so knew they must end it.

"Dragon Tail!" Zirconimon may have dodged Warudramon's glowing tail, but the dragon was a step ahead. "Muscle Punch!" Her glowing green fist created a crater in the chameleon's torso without piercing it completely. Now only one android remained.

"Dinosaur Hurricane!" SuperComputramon experienced déjà vu as Giganotomon trapped her in a wide vortex rather than a tall one. Energy slivers scarred her beyond repair. So angrily the dinosaur attacked that she let the robot suffer while dissolving. Afterward, Valese and Nimiya's eyes dilated with surfaced convulsions before they passed out. After recollecting themselves, the others rushed to their sides.

"Valese!" Tomoki coached, "Wake up!"

"Oh, no!" Izumi discovered, "Nimiya's scar has gotten worse!"

"Theirs both have," Kouichi refuted.

"Let's get 'em back to the ship," Takuya ordered. Junpei hoisted Nimiya on his back while Kouji contended with Valese. Everyone then headed back the way they came, paying the battle-scarred area no heed.


	7. Chapter 7

Neither sister moved even once during the difficult trek back to the ship. Whatever happened, their condition apparently grew worse: light breathing; pale skin; high body temperatures; and of course, nastier scars. The others wretched at seeing the marks but mentally kicked themselves for not looking at something else in the first place. Junpei had it harder since the older sister's arms were drooped over his shoulder. Without Iromon or another Digimon to provide quick transportation (their Beast Spirits just didn't qualify for various reasons), the return trip felt longer. "How much further?" Kouji asked, "I feel like I'm in gym class."

"Hah," Junpei scoffed, "You got it easy. Older kids usually weigh more."

"Guess Valese must be pretty heavy for her age," Kouichi assumed.

Since both had their hands full, they gladly accepted Takuya's provided information. "According to my D-Tector, we've only walked a third of the way. No roads as far as the eye can see. Talk about archaic."

"And they still haven't woken up," Izumi put in, momentarily glancing at the sisters.

"Poor girls," Tomoki admitted, "Zirconimon and SuperComputramon sure got 'em good. But it was a very tough battle." Then a thought popped into the young boy's head. As irony would have it, only he recalled catching Warudramon and Giganotomon's bulging eyes when those attacks nicked the neck and hand marks. He knew the freshly opened wounds might hurt quite a bit but never guessed just how much. "Wait a minute. You don't suppose their scars have anything to do with it, do ya?"

"Hmmm…" The older kids considered this idea. Except in movies and television shows, scars were just scars after all. However, the Digital World (or rather, Universe) boasted different properties than the Real World. When they thought about it, anything was possible here. Someone might even get the notion that it originated from people's dreams.

"I guess that sounds likely," Junpei said, "Given our history with Digimon and all, you can never tell. If so, why'd Nimiya pass out? Valese I can understand since the neck is a vital spot. But hands aren't what you'd call vital."

"Say, I had another thought," Kouichi added, "No Fractal Code after they reverted. Don't tell me they're just shadows like **I** once was."

"Looks like we'll never know until they wake up," Izumi said, "Let's just keep walking along." For a while, it seemed nothing would disturb the return trip. The digidestined had eliminated every single android guarding recently reacquired spirits. It was smooth sailing from here on out, right? Probably not. As the group neared the half-point on their maps, a strange glow of black and red blinked behind a rock shaped exactly like a five-pointed star having no crazy angles or other. The shadow looming ever forward seemed harmless enough since nothing happened when it overshadowed them. Yet Tomoki, Izumi, and Junpei felt higher creeps coming on than anything they could've experienced at the Trailmon graveyard or during the fight against Sakkakumon. In fact, even the remainder was nonexempt.

"I don't like the looks of that," Tomoki stammered, "Think we missed a few of those android Digimon?"

"Could be," Kouji said, "We never expected the Rookie forms hiding in our ship, the Champion forms in a station in that fog, and the Ultimate forms a way back. Then again, neither did we expect to run into Quetzalmon or MetalTyrannomon."

"Better not take any chances," Takuya decided, "Let's check it out." So the group shifted directions and walked a relatively short distance to this side destination. The ground behind the rock continued alternating between colors with no other absurd signs present until it faded out only seconds later. Each child looked around for possible clues. "Huh. That's strange."

"If this is someone's idea of a prank, I'm giving them a piece of my mind," Izumi said.

"Me too," Junpei agreed. Suddenly, the group nearly fell over, and he and Kouji almost dropped the unconscious girls.

"Uh oh!" Kouichi said, "We just walked into a trap!" Indeed, the digidestined felt the ground beneath them slightly fall. When they'd first arrived here, nobody noticed many visible groundwater sources. All encountered Digimon and constant missions barely gave them enough observation time. Drawing from the planet's vegetation, it appeared only hardy creatures like MetalTyrannomon were the best suited. Unlike the surrounding landscape, however, this spot gave off the impression that heavy rain waterlogged the soil and undermined its hold. Kouji and Junpei made it back to safety first while keeping an ever-firm grip on Valese and Nimiya. On the other hand, Takuya and Izumi plunged into hidden caverns. Tomoki and Kouichi would've joined them if they hadn't been close enough to grab hold of the fresh hole's edge.

"Takuya!" the boys called back, "Izumi!"

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …Kazemon!" Halfway down some tunnel, Izumi reacted quickly and saved herself and Takuya from certain death. Kazemon grabbed the boy's shoulders and flapped her wings nonstop. But even after she set him down gently by only ten inches, the fairy Digimon remained in the human girl's place just to be on the safe side. "You okay, Takuya?"

"Thanks, Kazemon." Both looked around in awe once more. An almost perfectly smoothed-out cave boasting deep indigo walls overshadowed the separated pair. The hole from which they fell through stood at least half a mile above and gave off dim light. No other light sources penetrated the darkness. All in all, this cave didn't offer much of a view. Kazemon made out a slight sound of rushing water but paid it no heed. "I tell you, things just get stranger and stranger every time we visit this universe. Let's leave."

"Up we go!" Kazemon grabbed Takuya's hand, and they both flew back up with high chances for escape. But to make it all the more difficult, the Warrior of Wind bumped her fist into an invisible barrier. "What in the world?"

"What's wrong?"

"There's an invisible wall blocking our way." Kazemon tapped her fingers and threw measly punches against it. "Whatever it is, it sure looks strong. But since I'm holding you, I can't really attack it and tell for sure."

Takuya got a dangerous look in his eye, which the female Hybrid returned with an irked one. "Drop me."

"Are you insane, Takuya? Do you even realize how high we are?"

"Well, you can't do this alone. Don't worry, I'll be fine. Once I spirit-evolve, I'll come back up so we can attack at the same time. That's gotta do something."

"Oh, alright. Bomb's away." Kazemon reluctantly released Takuya's hand from her own; his metamorphosis greatly penetrated both the cave's darkness and silence.

"Execute! Spirit Evolution! …Agunimon!" After touching down harmlessly, the Warrior of Fire gathered every last bit of velocity to implement a huge leap and make a joint attack with his teammate. His flaming fist grew hotter with each second of rushing air. "Pyro Punch!"

"Hurricane Wave!" Although they judged their attacks perfectly and hit at the exact same time, the barrier remained intact after flames and wind cleared away. Kazemon balanced grabbing Agunimon's hand again alongside her frustration at failure. "Ugh! Not even a scrape!"

"Maybe our Human Spirits aren't strong enough. Let's give our Beast Spirits a shot." They let go a second time around.

"Slide Evolution!"

"Zephyrmon!"

"BurningGreymon!" Now the pair need not hold hands due to their now shared characteristic of flight. "Wildfire Tsunami!"

"Hurricane Gale!" Unfortunately, another combined attack impacted with absolutely no effect. The timing may have been right, but the barrier was just plain stubborn. Zephyrmon took her pent-up emotions out on it via hitting and slashing. "Strike two for us! Stupid thing!…Wha?"

"Hold on, Z," BurningGreymon said, holding back her arms, "This is getting us nowhere. New plan: Let's just forget this hole and find another way out." Upon his released grip, the two flew about searching for a different escape route. Who knows, the one they plummeted from couldn't've been the only one around. But their eyes continually landed on nothing besides indigo rock, leaving no other option than blasting through. "Pyro Barrage!"

"Plasma Pods!" Although the rock held out just like the barrier, neither Warrior backed down if they couldn't find an escape. However, a bundle of tiny scared voices eventually halted their procession. The two stopped attacking long enough to hear the words more clearly.

"It's gone mad! The red flyer is attacking!" From what they picked up, whoever panicked was now ducking for cover. Footsteps, slammed doors, and shut windows echoed quite nicely. Rushing water came back to both sets of ears.

"We're not alone?" BurningGreymon wondered, "And is that water I hear?"

"Over there!" Zephyrmon pointed out. The pair flew towards the clandestine commotion, even deeper into the cave. As they flew forward, more dimmed light emitted from and outlined a circular village. Behind it ran a stream connected to a pond even further on down. It reminded them of the place where the Toucanmon attempted selling their D-Tectors, only darker and smaller. Plus, unlike previous areas, this cavernous section boasted stalactites and stalagmites. Though, some of their points had been lopped off and littered the floor. "Looks like whoever lives here got involved in a battle, or even a war."

"Yeah. The character responsible must be pretty ferocious." Zephyrmon and BurningGreymon instinctively exchanged nods and de-transformed before proceeding. Not that they'd forgotten their feelings for each other, but everything happening from the space station on up to now helped Takuya and Izumi hide it until after the mission. Being trapped half a mile underground certainly distracted them enough. The villagers were obviously more nervous than originally thought, because nobody greeted the two as they strolled up to the settlement's center. "Sure is quiet around here. Where'd everybody go?"

"I'll find out. Hello? Anyone home?"

"Look, it worked!" Takuya pointed towards a shed where a pair of eyes with spiral pupils peered out. Then more eyes preceded frog-like figures standing as high as the digidestined's knees. Through what little light existed, they also distinguished webbed hands and feet; green skin; white bellies; and tubas coiled around the shoulders. In fact, neither Izumi nor Takuya really needed any more light to analyze.

"If I'm not mistaken, these little beings are musical Champion Digimon called Gekomon. When they get together, they create an overwhelming concert. Their attacks are Symphony Crusher, Noise Echo, Crash Symphony, and Tongue Attack."

"Did you create that ruckus?" a Gekomon asked.

"Sorry for the scare," Izumi stated, "We were just trying to get out. The hole we fell through has some invisible blockade keeping us in."

"No doubt another omen of the red flyer," another Gekomon said.

"What's the red flyer?" Takuya asked.

"An evil bird Digimon who moves about slicing off stalagmite and stalactite tips," was the reply, "Although it doesn't hurt us, we know it's evil because the waters no longer carry the water bugs we feed on due to its presence. None of us have ever been able to fend the thing off."

"How come?" Izumi asked.

"Only a highly skilled individual can defeat this creature. He or she must hit a gold marking on its back just right with absolutely no slip-ups. But alas, we're all terrible fighters."

The kids exchanged pitying looks. "That's sad," Takuya said, "Maybe we can help."

"How?" a third Gekomon wondered, "What can creatures like you do against the red flyer?"

"Creatures?" Izumi said, "Haven't you ever heard of humans?"

"Uh, no," came a fourth voice, "What are humans?"

"Talk about nescient," she whispered to Takuya.

"Okay then," he said, "Do you know about Seraphimon, Ophanimon, and Cherubimon?"

"Who're they?" yet another voice asked. The kids were stunned at the Gekomon's slowness to catch on and appeared as if they'd fall over because of it. But ensuing trouble stole away their attention.

"It's here!" someone cried out, "The red flyer has returned!"

"Okay, humans, or whatever you are!" the second Gekomon announced, "You're on!" The villagers instinctively headed for shelter and left the pair holding the bag. An avian triclops made of red bones; red-tipped black feathers; yellow feathers on back of its head; brass-colored, thumb-like structures; and skull-shaped shoulder pads glided on the scene. Izumi didn't recognize it like Takuya since she, Junpei, and Tomoki were absent back in the day.

"Hey! That's Velgemon, the corrupted Beast Spirit of Darkness!"

"It is, huh? I never expected it to be so bony."

"A lot smaller than I last remember, but probably still tough as ever. Though, I wonder how he wound up here?"

"Whatever the case, he's going down." They pulled out their D-Tectors. "Execute! Beast Spirit Evolution! …Zephyrmon!"

"Execute! Fusion Evolution!...huh?" When the light cleared, Takuya stood where Aldamon should've been. "What's the deal? Why can't I fusion-evolve?"

"Look out!" Velgemon usually chipped off rock tips, but the bird apparently knew what kind of visitors had come and so lopped an entire abnormally large stalactite. Zephyrmon pulled Takuya out of harm's way as it chunked into the ground.

"Wow. You saved me again."

"Velgemon must've put up another barrier to keep you from fusion-evolving without even knowing it. Just use your Beast Spirit for now, and the two of us can't go wrong if we work together."

Takuya acknowledged Zephyrmon's suggestion. "Execute! Beast Spirit Evolution! …BurningGreymon!" The avian Digimon took no heed of anything else until the other two Beast Spirits provoked him. "Hey, buddy! Why don't you pick on someone your own size?" Velgemon looked towards them indifferently before firing off triple yellow lasers from his eyes which they barely dodged. "Oh, yeah? Pyro Barrage!"

"Plasma Pods!" The good ones didn't mind that the attacks rocked Velgemon without incurring damage. They typically intended on tiring him first before hitting that gold mark if not weaken. However, the bird eventually realized this and so counterattacked via trapping the pair within a black circle. No bottomless pits formed since it happened in mid-air, but Zephyrmon and BurningGreymon considered it a similar sensation to what Lucemon Chaos Mode once unleashed upon them. As if they weren't hurt enough, Velgemon poured on further pain by zipping around and slashing the two. "BurningGreymon! Just let yer eyes fall outta focus!"

"Are you sure?"

"Of course! This is just like fighting Sakkakumon, only with a little more light! We'll catch Velgemon easier!"

"Oh, I see! I hear ya!" As the pair floated together calmly, their eyes moved all about the place. Within seconds, Velgemon seemed to materialize out of thin air. Within seconds, they spotted something only four feet away. "Found 'im!" The bird couldn't react quickly enough before the force of BurningGreymon's punch and Zephyrmon's kick sent him reeling into a stalactite. Plus, it turns out their trick also judged correct aim upon the gold mark.

"Slide Evolution! …Kazemon!" She withdrew her D-Tector. "If you don't mind, he's mine. I needa catch up in the scanning department."

"Be my guest."

"Fractal Code Digitize!" And Velgemon was no more. Kazemon looked at him in her D-Tector while feeling very pleased with herself. She'd never scanned anything other than Ranamon and Calmaramon before, so this was a special moment for her. She once defeated a Woodmon, for example, but Lobomon ended up scanning it instead.

"Feeling happy?"

"You have no idea."

Down below, the Gekomon poured out of their buildings and cheered the two on. Joyous screams rang throughout that section as Kazemon and BurningGreymon smiled and stared back. "Don't mention it!" they chorused, "Bye!" As they flew off, however, the villagers' moods instantly switched to fraught.

"Come back!" one called, "We never even told you about the reward! We want you to be our king and queen!" But neither digidestined heard those last words. They flew right up the hole without running into another barrier this time, surprising their friends back at the surface. Kouji and Junpei sat up against other rocks with Valese and Nimiya lying on their laps, respectively. Having kept a watchful eye down the hole the entire session, Tomoki and Kouichi's hats nearly fell off their head when the pair surfaced.

"You're back!" Junpei exclaimed, "What happened down there?"

"Nothing much," Izumi casually stated, "Has either sister come to yet?"

"Nope," Kouji answered, "Unconscious as ever." No one dared look behind at the hole, the star-shaped rock, or the bear-headed mountain as the trek resumed. Thankfully, smooth sailing finally came on the horizon. Neither speech nor enemy nor trap disturbed anything or anyone.

One and a half more hours must've passed by before stepping into a certain isolated clump of trees. MetalTyrannomon had long since finished repairing her damage on the ship and so sat patiently. None even caught the peculiar glow in her eyes from something more. "Hello, children. You sure stirred up quite a ruckus earlier."

"Yeah, that just comes with the job description," Takuya said.

The carnosaur's eyes then darted towards the sisters. "Hey, what happened to them?"

"Knocked out cold, and we don't know why," Kouichi explained, "Plus, their scars are worse than ever."

"Aw, that's not good at all. I only wish I could do more."

"That's alright," Izumi said, "You've done plenty, and we're grateful."

"Thanks!" the five conscious kids concluded. After the door closed and the sisters got set down on a bed, the ship immediately demonstrated more independence by taking off without anyone doing anything. MetalTyrannomon continued staring on for hours even after its atmospheric penetration. Fight well, she thought.


	8. Chapter 8

Three days passed since the digidestined left MetalTyrannomon's home. The core team took turns remaining at Nimiya and Valese's side waiting for answers after promptly bandaging the scars. Figuring out how their spacecraft took off automatically while maintaining its previously set course hovered above all conscious heads on account of because the only 50-page manual around gave no information on the topic. Although Junpei skimmed the pages nicely and passed on newly acquired knowledge to everyone else in easier tutorials, neither he nor his teammates found anything on self-takeoff. On the plus side, at least the ship now boasted eight pilots instead of just two. But not a single hour went by without at least one person sitting beside the siblings' shared bed.

Day or night, the others administered extreme vigilance: eating meals in that one room, switching back and forth with sleeping, and even watching together while autopilot did all the work. Indeed, both sisters looked equally critical. Their breathing returned the morning after takeoff, but pale skin and fever yet lingered. Neither rumbling motions nor having onion and garlic bits waved over their faces courtesy of Izumi nor a dropped pin woke them. Seeing the sisters like this often made the others lose their appetites, but things ran smoothly for the most part; the trip saw no other interruptions from either Matrixmon's forces or anyone else.

However, despite lack of absurdity from outside, Kouji discovered something truly bizarre that one very morning. During his duty only minutes before breakfast, both Valese and Nimiya glowed in an eerie black aura while breathing nervously (no doubt from nightmares). Because tensions rang high, the others just so happened to check in and witnessed it for themselves. The aura and anxiety faded when Tomoki and Kouji placed one hand each on no particular forehead, and it also worked for the remaining four. It didn't take a scientist to realize the sisters merely needed social comfort, although it grew increasingly difficult to fight whatever sinister forces functioned here.

What exactly did the sisters think of? Although nobody could read their minds, pained expressions said it all. Various bad memories – parental arguments, sibling arguments, the day they gained scars – swam through their heads. Echoes of things like 'We settle this right here right now!' and 'You're just jealous' only made things worse. A vision of Iguanamon and BlackIguanamon's attacks blowing up the one mountain village made both abruptly wake up. "Unh!" they chorused.

"Whoa," Kouji commented.

Valese and Nimiya stood up out of bed, stretching and recollecting themselves. The latter also accepted her spectacles from Izumi. "What happened?" the older sister wondered, "How long have we been asleep?"

"Three whole days," Izumi answered, "We're back on track now. It's a good thing nobody's attacked us."

"Wait a minute, it feels like we're moving," Valese noted. In a panic, she and her sister walked into the main room and checked the setting. Other than an aromatic kitchen section, nothing was out of place. "How'd we get back up high? Did you do something?"

"Found a manual under the seat," Junpei explained, "It's not so bad once you get used to it. But the ship just started on its own, and we've been so concerned about you girls that we haven't figured out why."

"That does sound strange," Nimiya admitted, "We've piloted the ship more times than we can count. Unless there are still things even we don't know, it's not supposed to do that."

"Maybe whoever gave it to ya forgot to list those things in the manual," Takuya suggested, "'Cause we've looked up and down the ship, but that's the only one around."

"Aw, enough talk," Tomoki said, "Anybody besides me starving?"

Growling stomachs led to complex joint efforts in producing more burgers. For the first time in four days, all gained enough enthusiasm to dine on gourmet cooking rather than anything simpler like they'd previously done. Even Nimiya and Valese couldn't tear away from anything so tasty despite lingering depression. Plus, nobody minded the revealed scars after they removed their bandages. Though, the others required five minutes into lunch preparation before interrogations. "Valese?" Kouichi asked, "Nimiya? Is there anything wrong?"

"Why do you ask?" Nimiya said

"You conked out when you got hit on your scars," Izumi added, "Not to mention you've both glowed black while sleeping. It always went away whenever the rest of us felt your foreheads or held yer hands. And I'll say this in a whisper: We could really feel those negative vibes coming on."

"I recognized that sensation from fighting my brother when Cherubimon tainted him," Kouji related, "What's wrong?"

The sisters hung their heads low and sighed. "Just some nightmares," Valese said, "We already told you what."

"That bad, huh?" Takuya said, receiving a double nod in response.

"Haven't had many good times together," Nimiya continued, "And fer that matter, even before our parents started bickering, we never had any friends either."

"The only way to separate the darkness from our hearts is if we eradicate the oppressive regime currently on Digital Earth," Valese continued, "We just wish we didn't have to involve you so unnecessarily."

"Nah, don't sweat it," Tomoki said, "The Legendary Warriors go wherever they're needed. We'll defeat Matrixmon together."

"You said it," Junpei agreed, "And I'm sure you girls have had plenty of good times."

"Not a whole lot," Nimiya repeated.

"Better than nothing. No need to dwell on bad experiences. After we get back home from the cruise, we'll look you up and add on to yer current batch of good memories."

"You mean…?" Valese began.

"Yep!" Takuya chimed, "We'll be yer friends."

"Not only that, but you oughta confront your parents and tell 'em how bad you feel," Kouichi added, "They can't read yer minds." At that, neither Valese nor Nimiya resisted succumbing to kindheartedness beaming from everyone else's faces. Final battle or not, they could feel the darkness already departing. Such a positive concentration made an ensuing buffet possible.

With the digital week nearly up, the trip thankfully only bore ten more miles left. In the meantime, everybody told stories about exploits of which they felt most happy while keeping an eye on their path at the same time. But no one found themselves more amused than the Ishiwatari sisters. Nimiya and Valese were now jealous of six individuals besides each other; trials against Cherubimon and Lucemon looked like one big festival compared to those against Matrixmon. They couldn't remember the last time they'd been this happy. But all eight digidestined forgot the trip's total length alongside shared fatigue and boredom. They'd all longed to work at reclaiming Digital Earth for the third time in their lives. Nearing the checkpoint, the group buckled up with serious expressions while planning their attack. "Hey, look!" Tomoki pointed out, "The moons and Digital Earth!"

Even from that distance, everyone saw the mechanized effects on both the planet and its natural satellites. Nobody found a trace of vividness or emotion. Only Dark and Franken Trailmon drove along Digital Earth's many railways. With an imminent enterprise, all heads thought deeply how to begin attacking. "Huh," Izumi said, "We were in such a hurry days ago that we never noticed the monochrome moons. That's sad."

"No fooling," Kouji chimed, "Say, Nimiya. Valese. Where do yer D-Tectors say you gotta find your Digimon spirits' Mega forms?"

"No place," Valese answered, "It's just like when you and Takuya fusion-evolve: Our spirits' Rookie, Champion, and Ultimate forms mold into Shashumon and Astermon figurines. Okay, so it's not the exact same way, but it's close."

"Let's get planning," Takuya announced, "Whadda we plan on doing when we land? Where do we find Matrixmon?"

"For your first question, there's nothing we can do but immediately begin fighting," Nimiya said, "She's turned the planet into an ethereal fortress that's basically crawling with soldiers. Whether or not we crash land, the heat is instantly on."

"Hold up," Junpei realized, "We've been going about this the wrong way. What if we purposely let them take us to Matrixmon? You know, so we wouldn't hafta waste energy and effort on anyone else?"

"Wouldn't work," Valese countered, "We tried that once, but the soldiers recalled our feisty attitudes and attempted knocking us out cold. And how much you wanna bet they've been notified of incidents at our last two pit stops? Matrixmon keeps close connections with her followers regardless of distance. Nobody'll take chances after what's happened so far, and the rest of you need me and Nimiya for our immunities."

"Well, I'm guessing we got our work cut out for us when we land," Kouichi noted, "And Takuya and Kouji can fusion-evolve while the rest of us can't, so our Beast Spirits will just hafta do. EmperorGreymon, MagnaGarurumon, and Susanoomon won't be able to help since the other Legendary Warriors are still captured. But at least you girls got Mega-level Digimon spirits."

"Starting now," Nimiya announced, "Everyone, hang on tight!" With only three miles remaining, forces on the moons immediately opened fire. Digital Earth joined in seconds later. The sisters maneuvered admirably through an entire shower of laser blasts and whatnots, breaking through the atmospheric border. But it wasn't long until a pair of curved blades sliced off both wings completely.

"Uh oh!" Takuya said, "Did the wings get hit again?"

"Yeah, but it wasn't just the tips!" Valese said, "Brace yourselves!" The siblings just barely pulled up before the ship went sliding far across the main street of a different city from the first one they landed in. Civilian Digimon naturally dodged in fear without screaming. Ejected chairs, parachutes, and spacecraft rubble littered the street as the vehicle crashed into a skyscraper and exploded.

"Well, so much for our transportation," Kouji said, "Hmm…" All eyes darted around another empty scene. Everyone living here obviously hid inside the buildings. What of the soldiers? Shouldn't they have shown their malicious mugs by now, at least to clean up if not fight? Nimiya already spoke of the regime's top-notch defenses. Ten or twenty feet thick, it felt like cricket chirping could penetrate the ubiquitous metal.

"Okay, we've arrived," Tomoki began, "Where'd everybody go?"

"The civilians are hiding, we're standing right here…" Junpei stated, "Aren't the soldiers gonna come and get us?"

"Right on schedule," Izumi pointed out. From all visible pathways, a slim horde of IronIguanamon and Rokushoumon surrounded the digidestined. At an aerial viewpoint, the scene resembled a checkerboard without the colorful tartan pattern.

"Funny," Kouichi said, "There are so few of 'em." The Rookies then exhibited a familiar glow twelve seconds later.

"IronIguanamon, warp-digivolve to… MutantCybormon!"

"Rokushoumon, warp-digivolve to… Dekimon!" Now the group had officially encountered two more familiar sets. Archosaur chameleons replaced the IronIguanamon, and computer cephalopods stood where the Rokushoumon existed. Whatever the case, the digidestined exchanged fear for uncertainty. Would they be able to spirit-evolve quickly enough?

"MutantCybormon is a quicker Digimon than her size lets on," Junpei analyzed, "Her attacks are Mutant Destroyer and Alkaline Crystal Horns. On the other hand, Dekimon is a slowpoke but a worthy adversary anyhow. Keep a watchful eye on her Livewire Flare and Cyber Scythe."

"Great," Nimiya complained, "I'm out of ideas. From the looks of things, they won't give us a chance to react. What now?"

"Delays for conversion have concluded," one Dekimon announced, "However, the BlackIguanamon and Iguanamon icons will instead be terminated."

"Cyber Scythe!" all computers chanted. What else could the group do but stare in shock as the sisters faced certain doom. But time seemed to slow down as one flash each from eight pockets emitted a protective barrier to ward off countless blades. The kids withdrew their digivices without feeling too shocked.

"Well, well, well," Kouji commented, "Our D-Tectors saved our hides."

"Analyzing situation," a MutantCybormon said, "Ordeal defies explanation."

"It's not gonna last forever!" Kouichi said, "Let's make a move while it's still good!"

"Execute! Fusion Evolution!"

"Aldamon!"

"Beowolfmon!"

"Execute! Beast Spirit Evolution!"

"Zephyrmon!"

"MetalKabuterimon!"

"Korikakumon!"

"JagerLoewemon!"

"Execute! Mega Digivolution!"

"Shashumon!"

"Astermon!"

The android soldiers had to make room for a pair of Spirit Fusions, four Beast Spirits, and two new Megas. Shashumon was a snake-like Digimon clad in a matching dark-green archer's shirt and triangular hat; arms wielding twin longbows; tan eyes with black slit pupils; lime-green skin just like Iguanamon; yellow feather on the hat; and no legs. Astermon also gave off a snake-like appearance but naturally with differences: a pair of small, curved white horns near each eye; asteroid torso; metal-cased craters that apparently opened up crosswise; three-fingered rock arms; and two-toed rock legs. Standing almost the same height as the androids, the snake Digimon required even more room for their presentation. "Defeat is inevitable!" another MutantCybormon retorted as backup appeared on the scene.

"As if! Shashumon, here to rock! Flames rage on my left arm in the form of Blazing Arrow! And on the right, Lightning Triangle will electrocute you to kingdom come."

"Don't forget good ol' Astermon! My Terra Bash is an impact waiting to happen, and the craters on my chest unleash a nifty little something I call Planetoid Bombard."

"What a waste of speech," a third MutantCybormon responded, "Mutant Destroyer!"

"Solar Wind Destroyer!" An orange fireball met a triple tan blast from the chameleon's middle horn and hands, eliminating a whole slew of reptilian androids. Not wanting to be left out, the other digidestined and the Dekimon advanced on the ruckus.

"Cyber Scythe!"

"Alkaline Crystal Horns!"

"Beo Saber!" Beowolfmon's twin lances fended off more scythe blades, alongside trios of extended horns glowing silver and white. Every android endured a slightly harder time with this canine quickie, all in all.

"Livewire Flare!"

"Blazing Arrow!"

"Planetoid Bombard!" Asteroids and a burning arrow cut through a cloud of blue sparks. Aldamon, Beowolfmon, Shashumon, and Astermon certainly struggled against stacked odds, but the remaining four had it much more difficult.

"Plasma Pods!"

"Bolo Thunder!"

"Frozen Arrowheads!"

"Ebony Blast!" Zephyrmon, MetalKabuterimon, Korikakumon, and JagerLoewemon narrowly managed defeating one soldier at a time, let alone hordes. Their attacks alone barely scratched the opposition. To make things worse, oncoming assaults wouldn't allow them to literally keep together. While their friends tossed away one soldier after another, this quartet soon lay reverted upon the very spot where their ship crashed (the rubble since cleared). Izumi, Junpei, Tomoki, and Kouichi stared down gargantuan doom for the third time as wires coiled around.

"Your efforts have proven futile," a Dekimon crooned.

"Um, Aldamon?" Tomoki called as she picked the four up, "Shashumon? Anybody? We could really use yer help!"

"Be not apprehensive for your subroutines," the one computer continued, "They will exhaust their energy supply shortly."

"I'm on my way over!" Astermon called, having spotted the new incident, "If I could only get past these jerks." In fact, all four noticed their friends being taken away but could do nothing. More MutantCybormon and Dekimon continued distracting them, allowing the one personnel faction to move along without interruption.

"Guess this is it," Junpei sighed, "It's been nice knowin' ya." Then came the unexpected interruption they'd waited for.

"What's that?" Izumi wondered. Androids and digidestined were equally surprised at the sight of a twister made of the destroyed ship's rubble. Without affecting the soldiers, it swarmed around the one Dekimon to emit flaming snow. This matter dissolved rubble as it effortlessly levitated the wordless quartet out of the computer's 'arm' high into the sky. Everyone ceased battling to watch two crisscrossed halos do their stuff.

"What in the world?" Beowolfmon said.

In the grainy mass, all four continued floating while Kouichi examined it. "Hmm. This looks like the same stuff that released our Human Spirits back in that space station engulfed in flames. But how'd it get here?"

"We brought it here," came two familiar voices.

"Quetzalmon and MetalTyrannomon?" Tomoki said.

Yes indeed, that winged snake Digimon whom they'd heaved into that bilberry pond and the cyborg dinosaur whom they got off to a rough start with had acted yet again. And as it turns out, only the soldiers could see into the glitter if not penetrate it. Either way, curiosity overrode their programming. "Organic and technological aliases detected within grainy mass," a MutantCybormon noted, "First Digimon identified as Quetzalmon. Armor level. Equipped with battle arts of Freezing Wave, Fossil Wave, Cold And Clammy, and Toltec Wind. Second identified as MetalTyrannomon. Ultimate level. Programmed with Fire Blast II and Nuclear Laser."

"Wow," Beowolf declared, "They came through again."

"Greetings, friends," Quetzalmon said, "How have you been?"

"In trouble until you showed up," Izumi replied, "Where'd you come from? Do you two know each other?"

"Now we do," MetalTyrannomon spoke, "What you see are only projections.

"The key I gave has done more than just unlock doors," Quetzalmon continued, "I have restored a temple to full vitality, clogged a giant vessel, and unleashed six out of ten Human Spirits."

"You freed Beetlemon and the others?" Junpei queried, "We owe you a lot."

"I helped liberate the corresponding Beast Spirits, my own home, and kept a vessel safe. Our only reward is seeing you carry out heroic actions. Now you must join your fellow Warriors and advance to the next level."

"You mean…?" Izumi began. MetalTyrannomon and Quetzalmon were quite special Digimon in their own way. They may not have entirely measured up to the Great Angels, but their power made an efficient enough boost. The flaming snow swirled around quicker before instigating a chain reaction once deemed impossible on the four's D-Tectors. "Execute! Fusion Evolution! …JetSilphymon!"

"Execute! Fusion Evolution! …RhinoKabuterimon!"

"Execute! Fusion Evolution! …DaiPenmon!"

"Execute! Fusion Evolution! ...Raihimon!"

While the soldiers slightly backed away, the other four digidestined took up front-row views. In following tradition, parts from Loewemon and JagerLoewemon composed Raihimon. Loewemon's head stood upon a bipedal version of JagerLoewemon's torso and thighs which ended in two-toed feet and without lion heads. Said Beast Spirit's front leg armor covered the Human half's arms. Shoulder cannons were a bit thicker. Golden segmented wings and a spear acted as deviations.

Whereas the last three looked exactly like fusions of the spirits composing them (save Raihimon's deviations), the remainder were an amazing yet eccentric sight to behold. As her name implied, JetSilphymon took on a vehicular impression. Purple and silver metal covered all but her upper arm sections and mid-torso region. Goggles, metal mask, and a helmet with a jet-shaped ornament protected her head and neck. Sidewinder gauntlets; purple stars on the chest; stiff wings; pinwheel staff; and foot turbines topped her off.

RhinoKabuterimon looked stranger: more like another Beast Spirit than a fusion. Four bulky feet jutted out of a rugged blue cylinder decorated in brass clumps and copper spikes. A copper frill bordered the strangest head anybody ever laid eyes on. And some brass spike which could've been a tongue, accompanied by twisted brass projections where a face belonged, diminished all hopes for normality.

But DaiPenmon appeared the strangest of all. Unlike everyone else so far, he seemed more of a Penguinmon relative rather than a fusion of Kumamon and Korikakumon. Blank-faced blue eyes; indigo skin with a white belly; some white hat; and stubby, yellow three-toed feet weren't even the half of it. His flippers each gripped one highly unexpected weapon: a pink ice pop on the left, and a blue one on the right.

"Digimon identified as JetSilphymon," a MutantCybormon began, going from left to right, "Composition of the Kazemon and Zephyrmon programs. Techniques: Ultra Turbulence and Jet Winter." She then looked towards Junpei's fusion. "Digimon identified as RhinoKabuterimon. Originating from the Beetlemon and MetalKabuterimon programs. Thunder Laser and Condenser Storm are its battle arts."

"Digimon identified as DaiPenmon," a Dekimon concluded, "Originates from the constitution of the Kumamon and Korikakumon programs. Battle arts aptly labeled Strawberry Death and Blue Hawaii Death... Sum of Loewemon and JagerLoewemon programs equates to Raihimon. Its techniques are Blazing Spear and Defense Shield."

"Awesome!" RhinoKabuterimon declared, "I didn't think we had it in us! Let's see what these new forms can do!"

"Request accepted!" all MutantCybormon said, "Mutant Destroyer!" And so the battle resumed. For the first part of Round 2, the other four stared on in awe as their friends did all the work. Well, could anyone blame them? Takuya and Kouji needed a boost from Seraphimon's digi-egg. The sisters obtained Mega forms by searching deep inside themselves when battling different Megas. But Quetzalmon and MetalTyrannomon made it resemble a walk in the park, aside from how adequately they all fought. Beowolfmon became the first to snap out of his trance.

"Condenser Storm!" Lightning clouds appeared out of RhinoKabuterimon's frill, short-circuiting and destroying more soldiers.

"Blazing Spear!" Raihimon's spear burned immensely before impaling enemies.

Both then noticed the latter's brother's expression. "Hey, Beowolfmon," the former said, Pick up yer jaw and tag-team with us."

"Huh? Oh, right!" So the brothers hopped onto the mechanical beetle's back, and they marched down the street. "Beo Saber!"

"Thunder Laser!" Be it cord or whatever, Beowolfmon cut through whatever got in the pair's way. Then a blast of yellow electricity from RhinoKabuterimon's horns did the rest. Soldiers dissolved like they never arrived.

"Defense Shield!" Raihimon's wings became a shield to of course deflect enemy assaults.

"Jet Winter!" JetSilphymon's dorsal jet helped her charged head-on to damage internal circuitry. The evil Megas' screens and eyes cracked open before they themselves imploded. Fortunately, it didn't hurt her friends.

"Wow," Aldamon murmured, "Gotta hand it to her, she's really something."

"C'mon, Aldamon!" JetSilphymon coached, "Let's dance!"

"Guh…whaddaya mean?"

"Don't be coy. Time to partner up again!"

"Oh, I see! Gotcha! Atomic Inferno!"

"Ultra Turbulence!" The pinwheel's resultant hurricane enhanced a fire stream. Still more android soldiers got reduced to raw data. It seemed like a good thing that they didn't express Fractal Code, because the constant reinforcements wouldn't've given the digidestined enough time to scan it all first.

"Strawberry Death! Blue Hawaii Death!" A frozen energy streamer of red supplementing a frozen blue fog made icy statues out of the bad androids, which immediately collapsed like glass before dissolving. Astermon and Shashumon would've laughed if the situation hadn't been so dire. DaiPenmon quickly licked both weapons while turning towards the sisters. "What're you girls waiting for? Stop standing there and do something!"

"Oop!" Shashumon realized, "Sorry about that! Lightning Triangle!"

"Terra Bash!" Three electrified arrows sailed through the air and destroyed soldiers without touching them, much like RhinoKabuterimon's Thunder Laser. Retracting head and limbs, Astermon fatally impacted an umpteenth procession. Not that they learned fear the hard way, but the soldiers now knew how outmatched they'd become and so retreated. Upon reversion, the digidestined couldn't tear away from boasting.

"What a battle!" Junpei declared, "Did any of you see the way Kouji, Kouichi, and I wasted those wimps? It was all slice, bam, and zap! Beowolfmon, RhinoKabuterimon, and Raihimon: What a team!"

"We really shouldn't boast about it, but oh well," Kouji said, "Yeah, what a team."

"High five, pals!" Kouichi coached.

"JetSilphymon," Izumi said, "I like the sound of that. You and I make swell dancing partners, Takuya."

"Lemme be the first," was the response, and the two shook hands.

"Strawberry and blueberry!" Tomoki exclaimed, "Mm, mm! DaiPenmon's got some tasty attacks!"

"Yeah, words can't describe it," Valese said, "But we're not out of the fire yet. We still gotta track down Matrixmon."

"Where could she be?" Kouichi wondered.

"Good question," Nimiya said, "We haven't seen her since she disappeared into the ground."

"Then maybe she's somewhere underground," Junpei suggested, preparing to run off, "We won't know unless we look. C'mon."

"But what're you looking for?" Kouji asked.

"Maybe some hidden pathway or dimensional door. It's better than just standing around." However, what happened next saved everyone the trouble.

"Wasted energy is unnecessary," came the same mysterious voice as before.

"Hey, who said that?" Izumi wondered.

"Matrixmon," Valese answered.

"Okay, Matrixmon," Nimiya challenged, "We've had it up to here with yer shenanigans. It's time we finished this now."

"I do not comply to organic outlooks, but it appears circumstances beyond my jurisdiction compel me to do so. Very well, then. Proceed forward." At Matrixmon's command, an elevator-like tube rose up in the middle of the street with enough room for all eight digidestined. They shrugged before stepping inside and dropping miles down in quite a short time limit.


	9. Chapter 9

"Talk about a fast elevator," Takuya commented, "Or slow. I can't really tell." Only three minutes spanned between the digidestined's underground trip and their entry; everything in plain sight seemed to zip on by despite depth though it also felt like they'd been inside for at least a half hour. From experience, all but the sisters recognized this sensation from falling off a certain moon into the Dark Area. What remained of Dynasmon and Crusadermon's plunders was a big black mass surrounded by railroads, with a mahogany center. But yellow light now made the whole thing look more like a lightbulb. "And I don't recall there being any light down here, much less an entire lamp store."

"That's just Matrixmon for you," Valese shrugged, "Can't believe we didn't realize her location sooner. Then again, where else would hold a volatile megalomaniac like her or Lucemon? Under ordinary circumstances, this kind of travel is tricky without sufficient energy."

"Well, Matrixmon definitely got it down pat," Kouji added, "Here's the end of the line, by the way." It halted two feet above a mass of yellow, causing all but the sisters' eyes to widen. The other digidestined had grown so accustomed to Digital Earth's true core while fighting Lucemon. Neither the beige nor the yellow offered any comfort, rather it only made things creepier.

"Either that's what used to be the Dark Area, or a trapped star," Kouichi said, "Think she wants to burn us alive?"

Before anybody replied, several projection images opened on a wall across from their line of vision. One showed Valese and Nimiya's constant struggles against IronIguanamon and Rokushoumon. Another displayed the evil androids' escape off the reptilian Digital World. A third showed them getting caught in some electromagnetic time warp or other. But following incidents provided higher surprise: Cybormon and Computramon handling the other Human Spirits effortlessly (excluding Duskmon); Zirconimon and SuperComputramon not breaking a sweat against the other Beast Spirits (no Velgemon present, naturally); Crusadermon holding back MutantCybormon's jaws only inches away from her head; and Dynasmon caught in between Dekimon's cords. "An autobiography," Nimiya said, "Matrixmon's origin."

For repetition, the projections soon played specified events over and over again. "Would y'all quick talkin' funny and speak simply already?" a frustrated Ranamon echoed.

"We communicate peculiarly?" came Computramon's voice, "Such an assumption can only be construed as an unconscious fear that you yourselves exude similar emotions."

"What?" Grumblemon said, "Grumblemon not understand word she say."

"I think she said we talk funny," Arbormon echoed.

"Thou canst not possibly withstand our combined efforts!" Sakkakumon taunted, "Prepare to meet thy maker!"

"Such bravado is misleading," Zirconimon retorted, "Digimon do not manufacture one another, and your hard drives will typically crash beforehand!"

"Why is Matrixmon entertaining us with an amphitheater?" Izumi wondered, "Why does she want us to know this?"

"Good question," Valese said, "For once, even **I** don't know. Maybe she hates clueless people or something."

As the smaller projections faded, everybody must've shed a tear at what came next. The one planet ravaged by darkness and desolation Valese mentioned earlier overshadowed even the beige void. Such a dark sky looked as if it could swallow the faintest light source in a single gulp. Dead plants, structural rubble, and small fires added on to the gloom. Eerie silence dominated until Rokushoumon and IronIguanamon landed on the main street from out of whatever dimensional limbo ensnared them before. Nobody in the movie heard anything the digidestined said or did because, well, it was just a movie. "System functions in order," Rokushoumon announced, "We have surpassed limbo."

"Observing environment," IronIguanamon put in. Despite lack of emotions, one could just tell the Rookies felt irked about the new surroundings. "Contrary to appearance, the celestial body has promise. Data for history unavailable."

"The Iguanamon and BlackIguanamon programs are out of radar range, but they will arrive shortly. We must locate and eliminate the current dominant programs. My sensors indicate they are responsible for this disarray." And so began the first day of the rest of their unnatural existences. The android Digimon strolled along slowly at first, coming across meager life signs little by little. A Penguinmon sat up against a decaying windowless building yet standing, a Pagumon underneath her left flipper and a Reremon under the right. All three looked very decrepit for their ages. The avian Rookie held the smaller ones tightly in a motherly fashion as IronIguanamon and Rokushoumon came up closer for inspection. She was just as fearful, but Penguinmon made it clear she'd do anything to keep her companions safe.

"Digimon identified as Reremon, Pagumon, and Penguinmon. Respectively Fresh, In-Training, and Rookie stages. Not of the same digivolutionary line."

"We must proceed." So they continued on along the street, not giving the helpless trio a second look. Noises emitting from around one skyscraper's corner interested the pair and interrupted their trek. They stood close enough for an accurate telescopic visual but far enough to remain hidden from prying eyes. As the movie itself acted along with the bionic pinpointing, the digidestined received more shocks also. What used to be a park had long since died. Everyone both outside stumbling about or inside squealing only to be quieted were in the same condition as that little trio the androids already encountered, if not worse. Wordless, the digidestined shook their heads in pity. IronIguanamon and Rokushoumon retreated back onto cracked pavement while their points of view zoomed back out.

"I calculate this planet's untimely demise to occur within the next year should present conditions persist," the former commented, "There are no visible defenses at present, but that is subject to change."

"The time required for locating the responsible program or programs is inaccessible. Let us lure them to our location instead." Next thing anyone knew, the Rookies sped on down the street as if pursued by a raging hurricane. Upon warp-digivolving to their Mega forms, they then seized hold of and quickly repaired a felled beacon on the outskirts and sent a message around the planet. A smaller movie appeared off to one side displaying four clandestine figures: four fighting against easy-to-recognize Shashumon and Astermon.

"I remember," the real Nimiya said. With or without visible expressions, the other four didn't look pleased about leaving the battlefield too soon. After trapping the snakes inside a fiery sphere, that quartet immediately sped off towards the transmission's source. The smaller projection instantly disappeared when they arrived in the particular city, and concealment vanished.

Whereas anyone else around immediately fled at the sight, MutantCybormon and Dekimon stared at four infernal Megas apathetically, and vice versa. The first one looked like a messed-up bear: black fur covering the shoulders, elbows, legs, and head; two curved ivory head horns; steel-blue cubiti, ankles, chest, and face; too many sharp teeth; raspberry claws; and black and purple wings. Beneath him stood a centaur: gray legs and arms with yellow markings; maroon fur; brown wings; curved black head horns; black waist horns with red markings; black and gray human torso; and a skull mask.

The third one was some skeleton: brass, two-horned skull; brass armor on the chest, waist, and knees; right arm fitted into a crooked scythe blade; three-fingered left arm equipped with a cannon and a brass shoulder pad; hood-like covering from where the head projected; skull chest decal; and a red belt. A Cyclops – gray skin; reptilian tail; orange wings; one yellow eye on each palm; central yellow eye on the face; metal-tipped fingers and toes; and a dark-gray helmet – completed the set. "Digimon identified as Daemon, Gulfmon, Reapermon, and Ghoulmon," MutantCybormon observed, "Mega level. Heavy energy concentrations detected."

"Aren't you a sight for sore eyes!" Ghoulmon cracked, "I see you've done your homework: in all three directions!"

"Are you Megas as well?" Gulfmon threatened, "Because we must warn you, we're running this bit of dirt. If you only knew what we do to competition, you'd be wise to leave."

The androids could just tell how nervous the demons felt, as the quartet never encountered anyone this firm before. Actually, Reapermon did better being an android herself (A/N: For the chapter's remainder, the term 'demons' will also refer to Reapermon). Dekimon and MutantCybormon were no strangers to treachery, so they didn't care much about the skeleton's allegiance. "Your ascendancy has officially expired," Dekimon retorted, "We hereby declare ourselves the new dominance."

Utterly forgetting the Ishiwatari sisters, laughter broke out amongst the demon Digimon. This mechanical pair hadn't any clue whom they spoke out against, right? "Oh, let's get serious now," Daemon mocked, "We're not expiring any time soon. Those snakes I just roasted were far more competitive than a steel dinosaur and a cube-headed squid. The planet already has us for rulers."

"Negative," MutantCybormon said.

"You dare deny our supremacy and glory?" Reapermon screamed.

"Unfasten your optic sensors and scan the surroundings."

"What'd she say?" Gulfmon wondered.

"'Optic sensors' means 'eyes'," Ghoulmon translated, "She told us to open our eyes and look around." All four heads and the Cyclops' hands panned the scenery. Everything other than the six remained silent like death, just the way the demons liked it. Darkness made it difficult to tell time. Few buildings remained standing tall. Rubble practically littered sidewalks and streets. "Gee, how about that. I'm looking but can't find anything wrong."

"Me neither," Reapermon mocked, "I guess everything's in perfect order."

"Bad command or file name," Dekimon countered, "What you observe recedes a far distance from the term 'perfection'."

"Affirmative," MutantCybormon added, "Your domination has installed nothing more than havoc and desolation. The process must cease and desist at once!"

"Havoc and desolation are music to our ears," Daemon said, "But if you hate it so much, we'd be more than happy to act as your undertakers! Chaos Flare!"

"Eye Blow!"

"Livewire Flare!"

"Black Requiem!"

"Bone Duster!"

"Mutant Destroyer!" It didn't take a rocket scientist to understand what kind of challenge the archosaur chameleon Digimon's last words indicated. Flames, sparks, and other blasts brought forth the city's first fireworks display since who knew when. Summoning a swarm of creepy little Digimon of lower levels, the demon quartet underestimated MutantCybormon and Dekimon's training. The swarm fell with just a touch from the former's horns and the latter's blades. Both acted far quicker at absorbing all available Fractal Code than the digidestined could have back on Digital Earth's surface. It was a miracle various shelters held out whenever a Mega got slammed into the ground.

"It's beginning again!" a voice cried from a panicked crowd. Alongside further destruction, shock dotted the battle when Ghoulmon and Gulfmon perished second. No human-lacking Digimon ever braved even one of the demons, much less all four at once.

"Impossible!" Daemon blurted, "I must have my eyes checked!"

"Your optic sensors are the only functioning units," Dekimon said, "You would be judicious to forfeit at once."

"Never! Evil Flapping!"

"Burning Cyclone!" Suicidal acts via a few scattered nasties – relinquishing Fractal Code to their superiors – aided the two remaining demons in concentrating every shred of power. Daemon unleashed a hot claw that flung MutantCybormon right out of the city. Dekimon barely kept her cords intact as a tornado-spinning Reapermon slashed her up and piled her next to the chameleon. With only a minute left before the demons closed in, MutantCybormon and Dekimon deemed the moment right for a last resort.

"Intense heat and pressure cubed, divided by incoming speed," MutantCybormon calculated, "Add acceleration…compute and execute!"

"Initiating DNA digivolution sequence!" Dekimon concluded.

"Huh?" the demons chorused. Daemon and Reapermon paused just in time to see the androids transform into distorted glowing masses. What happened next reintroduced light onto that section of the planet.

"MutantCybormon…"

"Dekimon…"

"DNA-digivolve to…"

"…Matrixmon." Lightning storms filled the scene. Everyone watching had to cover their eyes at what may as well be considered the most volatile fusion in existence. Shashumon and Astermon in the film proceeded forward after narrowly escaping the flame sphere but got thrown for a loop by shock waves. The demons hardly gave their new opponent a second look. A sky-blue sphere having red-orange eyes, a visible purple and green nucleus, and two gray electrons floated close to the mesosphere. It appeared as large as two mansions combined.

"And what are you supposed to be?" Reapermon taunted, "A big medicine ball?"

"Incorrect input," the sphere responded in a new voice, "I am Matrixmon, the DNA digivolution of the MutantCybormon and Dekimon hardware components. My techniques are Matrix Power and Software Conversion."

"How informative," Daemon said, "You got lucky with Ghoulmon and Gulfmon; they were weaklings anyhow. No stupid ball will dare match up against our might! Evil Inferno!"

"You said it! Grim Slasher!" Although both attacks didn't scratch Matrixmon, let alone hurt her, neither Reapermon nor Daemon cared much. In fact, they even enjoyed the challenge and so instigated all-out warfare.

"Matrix Power." Two simple blasts from the sphere's 'underbelly' temporarily knocked the demons down. She'd just come into existence, so her abilities would require development as time passed. The digidestined could only imagine how developed. "You have all but depleted your main power systems and currently function on backup generators. Do you wish to continue?"

"Are you joking?" Reapermon shot back, "I could do this all day! Burning Cyclone!"

"Me too! Evil Inferno!"

From Matrixmon's POV, time froze while an entire flame wall and a skeletal tornado headed her way. Both assaults proceeded slower than molasses, heralding the better of her attacks. "Software Conversion." She emitted an energy field glowing blue and silver upon anything in sight. Wave after wave put out Daemon's flames, slowed Reapermon down, and paralyzed them both. Although it froze everyone but the two sisters, Matrixmon had it harder with the demons.

"What's…going on?" Daemon struggled.

"I can't…move!" Reapermon added. Fractal Code exposed, neither demon Digimon resisted absorption as Matrixmon proceeded with planetary reconstitution. But something was horribly wrong.

"Danger! Power surge overloading internal circuitry!" The orb Digimon clearly had still a longer way to go before maintaining this form. Extreme energies disrupted her attempts at hostile takeover, though anyone affected remained so. Nobody other than the sisters minded the aftershocks, tumbling debris, or deafening explosions. "Cease and desist immediately!" But it was no use. Unable to control her own powers, Matrixmon instead blew up the entire world. That's when the projection faded.

"Ughhh," Tomoki babbled, "Those…those…poor Digimon." And before the group know it, they plunged into the yellow mass below after the elevator floor opened up underneath. While it slowed their descent just like the original Dark Area, it also expressed a sort of previously absent gelatinous feel. Takuya, Kouji, Izumi, Junpei, Tomoki, and Kouichi's jaws dropped the minute they stood firm and stared into the real Matrixmon's eyes.

"Whoa," Junpei declared, "It's true what they say: People and things are bigger in real life than on television."

"Welcome to my domain," Matrixmon spoke.

"Let's skip the small talk, Matrixmon," Takuya started, "You already know who the rest of us are, so I'll just get to the point. We, Ophanimon's Chosen Children, are here to put an end to this madness."

"I detect no chaos in my programming."

"You are the picture of chaos," Izumi chimed, "Look what you've done to the entire planet."

"Your voice digitizers exhibit a tone below the level of productivity. My primary task is the creation of order. Chaos is nonexistent in my programming."

"Oh, yeah?" Kouji retorted, "Whaddaya call it what we experienced up at the surface?"

"Organic intoxication is the true bringer of havoc, desolation, and chaos. The conflicts inflicted above my homepage occurred simply because of your static interference. Such would not be a difficulty had you complied to my commands."

"What?" Takuya retorted, "Are you blaming us for being attacked like that?"

"Affirmative. Due to my influence, Digital Earth's former model has become obsolete. I exist to create order."

"Order?" Kouichi said, "How can turning others into mindless drones with a metal coating and doing nothing more than what you tell them constitute as order?"

"Conflicts between the sister programs codenamed Ishiwatari supplemented my database reserved for Digital Earth's troubled history as well as that for the celestial body dictated by the fiend tetrad." By now, all digidestined grew tired of seeing projection screens pop up at the orb's command. Some showed the demon-oppressed planet, some pre-Matrixmon Digital Earth, and others post-Matrixmon. "My hard drive will not process lies. All of my recorded experiences have taught me the extent of the dangers behind the organic mind."

"Like you're any better than those four demons or Lucemon?" Izumi protested, "What about all the destroyed planets?"

"Yeah, and how can this one still be standing?" Kouichi added.

"So, you require a vocal account of my fusion. Upon departing the reptilian terra firma, I accidentally bypassed an electrical field into an illusory plain while searching for a new homepage. I encountered powerful phantoms modeled after those complex programs labeled the Legendary Warriors and Royal Knights. Defeating every shadow recompensed the memory gigabytes required for my upcoming DNA digivolution. I may have begun unstable, but ensuing fields each more resilient than the previous in conjunction with a final surge enabled me a more controlled modem at the expense of eight storages. But the damaged hardware shall become repaired in due time. Your interference has hindered expansion for my installed order, however, and I am unable to execute this task. Do not compare me to past deletions of whom lacked regard for units excluding themselves."

"Well, you're no different," Kouji shot, "Order isn't stone-cold perfection. At least they didn't brainwash others. So tell us another one."

"Why bother?" Valese countered, "We've been through this part before."

Projections of average activities on Digital Earth and the moons replaced everything else. To emphasize her point, Matrixmon mentally stripped off one showing Bokomon and Neemon at a bank calculating money. "I recall these units quarreling due to intelligence differences. Now they cooperate without fail, and the Neemon program expresses higher coordination. You cannot claim you desire otherwise."

"Or can we?" Takuya argued, "Bribery's not gonna work. Neemon wasn't the brightest thing around, but he made his own decisions. Who are you to turn him or anyone else into something they're not?"

"Uh, Matrixmon?" Nimiya said, "I and my sister could use a moment with our new friends." She faced the aforementioned six and withdrew her D-Tector. "Are you six done wasting yer breath? We already told her the exact same things, but did she listen? Of course not."

Valese pulled out her own D-Tector as well. "To quote Nimiya: We finish this now!" No further questions asked, the others immediately followed suit.

"Execute! Fusion Evolution!"

"Aldamon!"

"Beowolfmon!"

"JetSilphymon!"

"RhinoKabuterimon!"

"DaiPenmon!"

"Raihimon!"

"Execute! Mega Digivolution!"

"Shashumon!"

"Astermon!"

"A pity. Matrix Power." One huge blast dispersed the projections and nearly fried the digidestined.

"Oh yeah? Thunder Laser!"

"Jet Winter!"

"Lightning Triangle!" Explosions filled the synthetic arena. While the group unfailingly countered Matrixmon's blasts, actually damaging her was another story altogether.

"Surround her!" Aldamon commanded. Everyone took a separate position each. "Solar Wind Destroyer!"

"Terra Bash!"

"Blue Hawaii Death!"

"Beo Saber!"

"Blazing Spear!"

Once again, nobody even scratched her. "Matrix Power." The digidestined then attempted attacking all at the same time with still no successful results. It seems Matrixmon's technique came in varied shapes: A bright flash from her entire persona knocked the group down on the amorphous floor. "Foolish continuation is unnecessary. Initiating conclusive sequence. Software Conversion."

"NOOOOOOOOOO!" the sisters panicked. Knowing the following danger, the digidestined narrowly regrouped as the waves passed over. Only by lining up with one fighter's hand touching a shoulder in front of him or her did anyone escape. Matrixmon didn't care that the waves instead shoved them against a wall. They all barely managed keeping together.

"I secured peace and skills via my Software Conversion. Due to your harbored radiation buildup, however, you two will instead perish." For a while, it looked as if the group would stay pile-driven into the wall. While Matrixmon couldn't convert Shashumon and Astermon to her specifications, the waves began affecting the reptilian Megas in a different way.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!" they screamed.

"Astermon!" DaiPenmon cried, "Shashumon! What's wrong?"

"It's the darkness within," Beowolfmon stated, "Looks like they weren't exceptional after all." Heated scars emitted the same black light the sisters glowed in back on the ship. A dark shield rose up and resisted Matrixmon's energy field. With grotesque voice tones, the pair then separated from the group and took aim.

"Planetoid Bombard!"

"Blazing Arrow!" Black asteroids and a black burning arrow cut through the waves and gave the orb Digimon the long-awaited injury she'd been asking for. On the surface, everyone flinched at feeling their supposed superior's pain. Physically distorted, Matrixmon regained her shape while analyzing the turn of events.

"Unknown error. Software Conversion temporarily disabled by undefined negative concentrations."

"That's all we wanna hear!" RhinoKabuterimon began, "Condenser Storm!"

"Blazing Spear!"

"Ultra Turbulence!"

"Cleansing Light!" Whatever Shashumon and Astermon did to Matrixmon, it profoundly affected all three. Whereas it disabled one of the spherical Digimon's techniques, fatigue lingered upon the entire trio. Even so, the core group figured they should continue providing stronger firepower. Perhaps they'd take Matrixmon out quicker than expected and maybe even free everyone inside of her. Unfortunately, the orb kept a step ahead for the umpteenth occasion.

"This is it!" Aldamon declared, "You're going down, Matrixmon!"

"Bad command or file name. Matrix Power!" Yet another flash sent the procession plummeting. All stared up just in time to see her repeat history. "Initiating program advancement." Familiar lightning storms raged within as well as on the surface. Speaking of which, soldiers and civilians stared up towards the sky in respect. The former Dark Area grew brighter and brighter.

"She's digivolving!" Raihimon pointed out.

"No way!" JetSilphymon complained, "She was difficult enough!" Besides glowing brighter than the sun, Matrixmon gained a more beneficial shape distortion. But nobody had time to properly witness it. Lightning bolts struck and almost knocked even the fused Warrior of Thunder out cold.


	10. Chapter 10

"Matrixmon, digivolve to… Oburamon." Nobody felt as shocked as they did overwhelmed at hopefully the final form in this dual digivolution chain. Then again, not even the sisters saw it coming. Four electrons revolved around a sea-green oblate spheroid with black eyes and red-orange, flame-shaped eyebrows. Either the nucleus also grew larger, or the digivolution only merely magnified it optically. Brimming with energy, Oburamon stared upon her recovered opponents in triumph.

"Is that a Digimon or a jellybean?" RhinoKabuterimon wondered.

"Refer to me as Oburamon. The speed of a 300,000K modem now accompanies my Software Conversion. Because I calculate that this conflict will conclude shortly, it is pointless warning you to handle my Nuclear Reactor with care."

"Nuclear, huh?" Aldamon smarted, "Am I supposed to be impressed?"

"300,000K modem?" Shashumon realized, "Oh, no! That means she can brainwash in the blink of an eye!"

"Get back together!" JetSilphymon cried.

"Software Conversion." Although the group remained close together after the sisters disabled her technique before, Oburamon was far quicker this time. A shockwave touched down on everyone with their hands only millimeters away from each other's shoulders or other. The others felt paralyzed for a short moment until the orb Digimon triggered another black shield via Shashumon and Astermon's negativity.

"Horrible," DaiPenmon commented, "I wield the power of ice, and yet **I** got frozen solid."

"Not this again," Beowolfmon added, noticing the two Megas' repeated emotional change. Whereas they were grateful for the save, the core digidestined now expressed similar feelings like those Digimon inhabiting that one mountainous village. It seemed no matter what anyone did, not even the fused Light Warrior's Cleansing Light could alleviate their inner darkness. That's not to say, however, that both eyes became completely cold and empty.

"This is way over even my head," Raihimon admitted.

"C'mon," Astermon coached without the grotesque tone, "There's no telling how long the shield'll hold."

"Umm…Thunder Laser!"

"Jet Winter!"

"Atomic Inferno!"

"Blazing Arrow!"

"Frozen Hunter!"

"Planetoid Bombard!"

"Strawberry Death!"

"Blazing Spear!" The others hesitated but followed along to Astermon's request. Fortunately, the shield let their attacks pass through and continue battling. Rather than continue taking up arms, Oburamon simply levitated without incurring damage and calmly watched. One assault after another grew increasingly weaker. She wouldn't need x-ray vision to notice dark circles underneath anyone's eyes or stiff joints: The digidestined would've rather denied that the shield sapped their vitality.

"Condenser…Storm!"

"Solar Wind…Destroyer!" Soon enough, all attacks ceased. The Megas apparently only had enough strength to hold up the black barrier.

"Uhhhh," Beowolfmon babbled, "I feel so…tired."

"Me too," the other Legendary Warriors chorused. While Shashumon and Astermon remained within, the others promptly slipped through the shield and floated onto the 'floor', transforming back into human children. Their Fractal Code slightly buzzed as they shivered on their knees.

"So damp and evil," Tomoki whimpered.

"Tell me about it," Izumi agreed, "We must've taken a dip in evil water."

"Or inhaled a bad fog," Kouichi put in.

Ignoring the six, Oburamon dispersed her inactivity by first focusing on the sisters. "Your negative concentrations are ineffective against my present state. Immeasurability does not necessarily accompany invincibility." She prepared a new assault. "You have expired. Nuclear Reactor." Everybody else was too disoriented to wonder how long the shield would withstand the force of a flaming, chartreuse corkscrew beam.

"Lightning Triangle!"

"Planetoid Bombard!"

"Nuclear Reactor." Another beam dispersed the last two attacks and broke through the barrier, roasting Astermon and Shashumon alive. That's when the others finally regained all dexterity.

"Valese!" Takuya and Izumi cried.

"Nimiya!" Kouji, Junpei, Tomoki, and Kouichi chimed.

Rammed upon the same wall as before, the voiceless sisters all but passed out. Messy cowlicks, ripped clothing, and scattered third-degree burns made their scars look tame in comparison. Everyone else caught sight of every horrific detail regardless of distance. No way would Valese or Nimiya be able to provide aid given their condition. Oburamon had to fall! "Now what?" Tomoki asked.

"They're not dead just yet, but they're close," Takuya commanded, "And Oburamon's going strong as usual. If we could only free Ophanimon, Seraphimon, Cherubimon, and the other Spirits…"

"Software Conversion," Oburamon interrupted. All heads pointed up, but nobody escaped her wave this time. Still, Oburamon needed all the occasion she could muster for some unknown reason before she converted them successfully. Meanwhile, Nimiya and Valese took advantage of this opportunity to support each other physically in standing back up. Experiences in the Digital Universe combined with family drift certainly made them strong enough in various ways past a killing point for anyone else, but the evil orb's last blow pushed them closer to death.

"Ooh," the younger one grunted, "Feels like I took a lava bath. We really don't have much time left, Nimiya. My heart's beating weakly."

"Mine too. Valese, what chance did our efforts combined with everyone else's have at destroying Oburamon and releasing her captives?"

"Why're you asking me?"

"Because you're the smart one."

"I don't have all the answers. But for an estimate, I'd say we boasted higher chances of getting caught in an endless cycle rather than winning. If only we reached the other Legendary Warriors quicker."

"Now she's adding the remainder to her collection." Following her older sister's finger, Valese saw the transformation session for herself. Whenever it finished, they could just tell Oburamon wouldn't need much longer. Massaging certain spots for the last time, neither girl felt as much pain from the scalds as they did their scars. "I will take out Oburamon or die in the attempt. You don't need to die at such a young age."

"No way. Wherever you go, **I** go."

"But Valese…"

"Sorry, sis, but we're in this together. Things wouldn't be the same if I went home without a brave older sister to look up to. And besides, you can only redeem yourself. We came here together, and we'll go out with a bang together."

Nimiya admired her younger sibling, though neither recognized the other from their very arrival. Even if they couldn't show individuals back home how much they changed, at least they'd suffer no more. Admiration of six humans and all Digimon was enough treasure to burn for an eternity. "Okay, if you say so." The sisters exchanged one last hug before withdrawing their D-Tectors, spirit-evolving, and confronting fate.

"Execute! Mega Digivolution!"

"Shashumon!"

"Astermon!"

"Conversion process nearing completion." But Oburamon immediately stared towards the siblings, all the while continually metamorphosing the others into new drones. Hardly surprised, she showed off multitasking skills and prepared a third Ishiwatari-reserved blast. "Your remarkable persistence slows my modem. Nuclear Reactor." As if hearing voices divulge secret information in their heads, Astermon and Shashumon purposely met the blast head-on, and it turned out Oburamon made the worst mistake yet. "Second unknown error! Indeterminate mass temporarily clogging all sensors!" Gray dust blotted nearly every bit of light composing the yellow mass. Deep within the cloud, the paralyzed quintet felt Oburamon's energy leaving them.

"Huh…wha?" Kouji puffed.

"Did she get us again?" Junpei wondered, "And what's with all this blackness?"

"Can't be my Spirits," Kouichi said.

"No need to thank us," came Valese's voice. All other eyes faced transparent projections of the hand-locked sisters, back in their original states yet again and without the injuries Oburamon inflicted. "So, how do you feel?"

"Girls, what happened to you?" Izumi asked, "Don't tell me you're…"

"Yep," Nimiya finished, "Dead as doornails. It was for the best."

"But…but…" Tomoki stammered.

"There was no other way," Valese explained, "We sacrificed our own lives to give the Legendary Warriors, the Great Angels, and you our immunities against Oburamon's mesmerism. Along with unique sacrifices as well."

"Which would be…?" Takuya said.

"My life energy freed the Angels from Oburamon's grasp, and that of my sister helped the other Warriors. Not that we didn't realize it sooner, but we heard an unknown voice in our heads tell us only just now." Valese and Nimiya's ghostly forms slowly broke up toe to head into marble-sized data bits (A/N: Think Season 3). Only their faces remained when the older one whispered a closing statement before they disappeared. "The rest is up to you now." Feeling something wet flow down their cheeks, the core digidestined touched tears: They'd unwittingly mourned over teammates as well as new friends.

"Dry those tears, Chosen Children," came Ophanimon's voice, "Don't let their sacrifice grow cold."

"Huh?" Junpei said, "Ophanimon?"

"She's not the only one," Cherubimon echoed, "The sisters did mention the bonuses involved."

"So here I am working for you again," Kouichi stated.

"But where are you?" Izumi called back, "We can't see you!"

"No, but you can see the Legendary Warriors if you look hard enough," Seraphimon said. Mercurymon, Ranamon, Grumblemon, and Arbormon silhouettes appeared before the kids at the sound of the angel's voice as if the kids' eyes automatically fell out of focus. A flattered Cherubimon even smiled at Kouichi. For an umpteenth round of déjà vu, silhouettes of their respective Human spirits stood behind. With an assured victory, the kids stared up and smiled as if to say, 'Thank you, Ishiwatari sisters, for making this all possible'.

"Execute! Ancient Spirit Evolution! …Susanoomon!"

Yellow replaced the cloud once more. It must've hindered Oburamon's senses, for she neither witnessed the transformation nor realized her missing hostages for five seconds. "Indeterminate mass dispersed…warning! Internal error occurred! Great Angel and Legendary Warrior composite programs missing from hard drive!"

"Over here, you heathenish watermelon!" Cherubimon mouthed off. Seeing the Great Angels and Susanoomon together instantly broke through the orb Digimon's emotionless shell. Her widened eyes and panicked attitude spoke for themselves.

"Iguanamon and BlackIguanamon avatar immunities detected within hindrances. Must eliminate. Nuclear Reactor!" From this point forward, Oburamon used only the supernova shape of her attack. But the heroic quartet passed through it effortlessly and administered countless physical blows. "Danger! Internal hardware overheating!"

"Tough break!" Ophanimon replied between punches and kicks, "We needed to exercise, and you make the best punching bag! But it figures you wouldn't know how it feels being cramped up like that!"

"Software Conversion!" Oburamon no longer cared that her waves could only shove them away rather than convert, just as long as she got them off and destroyed them. But they only came back for more.

"Seven Heavens!"

"Sefirot Crystals!"

"Storm Of Judgement!"

"Heaven's Thunder!"

"Nuclear Reactor!" Everyone at the surface again felt their slave driver's pain and confusion: Now she had to spin around while attacking in order to clear the opposing blasts away. Unlike Lucemon Wild Mode, however, Susanoomon's last attack wouldn't trap Oburamon so easily. Fortunately, the Angels unveiled a hidden beneficial trick.

"Celestial triangle formation!" they chanted. Cherubimon floated above the orb, with Seraphimon and Ophanimon on opposite sides beneath. Holding his or her arms up angle-wise, each Mega discharged electrical streams from glowing palms to create a laser triangle that did trap Oburamon. All of her volatility couldn't save her now.

"Nuclear Reactor! …Error 628! Connection closed!"

"Hurry up, Susanoomon!" Seraphimon called, "We can't hold her forever!"

"I'm on it! Celestial Blade!" Susanoomon withdrew its mightiest weapon yet. Oburamon could do nothing more than stare her doom in the face as the laser cut through the yellow.

"Warning! Warning! System shutdown imminent!"

"Tell it to the undertaker!" Being careful not to hurt the Angels, the super-fused Legendary Warrior slashed the unfeeling spheroid precisely down the horizontal middle. Upon releasing their grip, Digital Earth's true rulers stood back as the universe's other greatest guardian withdrew a special D-Tector reserved only for such heavy emergencies as this. A belt of Fractal Code actually faded back and forth around what Oburamon had for a waist! "So, no Fractal Code, huh?" Susanoomon timed the D-Tector's touchdown just right. "It's time for the purification session! Fractal Code Digitize!"

"Danger! Fading power grid! De-digivolution in progress!" Her supposed absent Fractal Code gone, Oburamon changed into an empty black Matrixmon shell. Internal and external light sources within who knows how large a radius of Digital Earth immediately switched off. Civilians and soldiers lost momentum; some of both also fell over like statues. Only the Angels' and Susanoomon's luminescence penetrated the core's restored darkness. All floated without a clue about what to do next.

"Is it over?" Seraphimon wondered, "Did Susanoomon defeat her yet?"

"That's what **I** wanna know," Ophanimon stated. Suddenly, the lights came back on once again. The static shell glowed the same colors but lacked electrons. A medium hole cracked open on the underside, and white light emitted through. But the flashy mass really didn't matter until the rest of the shell slowly dissipated just like Nimiya and Valese. Whatever was happening, nobody liked it.

"Uh oh," Cherubimon concluded. The four placed their arms over their faces and chests as an implosion consumed everything and everyone in sight. The digital fabric of reality disappeared into a white void. Back as kids, hopefully for good, each digidestined found themselves walking along the void alone and unknowingly. Were they dead? Did they win or lose? Perhaps the answer lay in the following paragraph filling a recognizable screen:

**With Matrix defeated, emotions and freedom now ring loud upon the Simitar mainland. Her castle burned to the ground that night and lasted well into the morning, leaving behind no trace. Half of her forces now exist under equal citizenship, but the other half has perished. The heroes escaped without injury and were never heard from again. People only remember them through erected statues atop Mt. Ogawa.**

…**Game Over.**

No more! the digidestined thought. Game or not, all that mattered was getting back into the Real World where they belonged. Each child struggled in regaining consciousness as their pod doors opened up.


	11. Chapter 11

Note: Okay, I guess I lied. For those of you who care less about Season 3 (Tamers) or have yet to even look at it, here are the name meanings behind my made-up Digimon:

Kinhamon – kin (gold), hachuu (reptile)  
Warudramon – ijiwaru (ill-tempered)  
Shashumon – shashu (archer)  
Iromon – iro (color)  
Rokushoumon – rokushou (copper rust)  
Dekimon – deki (smart)  
Oburamon – obura (oblate)

It took a few seconds before the kids readjusted to whatever light permeated into the laboratory. Ding didn't like the blank looks in their eyes, so she responsibly helped each one step out of his or her pod. "You kids okay? Were the screens too bright?"

"Mmmm," Kouji mumbled.

"Huh?" Takuya wondered, "How'd I get back here? What day is it?"

"Get back?" Ding continued, perplexed, "Day? Why, you've been here the entire time for only an hour."

The group jolted. "An hour?" they chorused.

"Uh, yeah. Don't you remember? I told you I'd record yer play data. Gotta hand it to you, I've never seen anyone zip through something like this so quickly. Not that I've played myself, but it usually takes nearly half a day. Anyways, you beat Matrix and won. Wanna see yer scores?"

"Er, thanks anyway, but I could use some fresh air," Tomoki said, "I've had enough of video games to last me the entire trip."

"Yeah," the older kids agreed.

"Very well, then," Ding concluded as they departed, "Come by any time!"

Everyone shielded their faces from brighter lights as they stepped back into the ship's main hallway once again. No one really cared that they'd apparently been gone slightly longer from the Real World's POV: seconds exchanged for an hour. Whatever the case, they'd probably never get used to it no matter what. Upcoming questions didn't help much either. Did a pair of reptilian Digimon spirits really summon them back to help fight against a new threat named Matrixmon? Were Valese and Nimiya Ishiwatari real living people or lost ghosts? And what of all those supposed 'other' Digital Worlds'? Wanting not to draw attention, the kids solicited behind the same potted plants Kouji, Junpei, and Kouichi previously used as cover and quietly contemplated the matter. "What's anyone think?" Junpei started.

"Well, you got me," Izumi said, "Either I bumped my head and passed out back there, or I fell asleep. But I could swear I saw me and Takuya fight off a different Velgemon after falling down a pit. Not to mention we also discovered a hidden Gekomon village."

"No way!" Kouichi chimed, "I dreamt the same thing! Except, Tomoki and I grabbed onto the side quickly."

"That's right," Tomoki confirmed.

"So what's the conclusion?" Kouji wondered, "Did we go back or what?"

"Good question," Takuya said, putting his hands into his pockets. Feeling something that hadn't been there before, the leader jolted at what he withdrew from his right pocket: his D-Tector. The others immediately followed suit and received the same shock. Well, well! Everything they'd done up until now – meeting the robotic Digimon soldiers, being rescued by Kinhamon and Iromon, making the sisters' acquaintance, cooking scrumptious burgers, riding in a space ship, defeating Oburamon – had all been real. As the D-Tectors buzzed, the group huddled together so nobody else saw and received wonderful news. Each screen panned along various images: the Great Angels restored to power, overshadowed by the Legendary Warriors; the worlds destroyed by Matrixmon, up and running without any kind of oppression; Bokomon and Neemon standing at the Fire Terminal once more; and a scene on the aforementioned reptile world.

Iguanamon, BlackIguanamon, IronIguanamon, and Rokushoumon amused themselves with a Bernoulli ball. However, the quartet's newfound friendship didn't surprise the kids as much as the planetary surrounding. Various panned images expressed techno-organic plants and buildings. Why, one even showed a building actually growing from a seed! Surprise soon turned into thoughtfulness. "Huh," Junpei said, "How about that." And with that, the D-Tectors disappeared into thin air. The kids need no longer stay clumped together.

"Well, that answers that," Izumi stated.

"But wait a second," Kouji realized, "That also means…"

"Valese," Tomoki said, "Nimiya. They really are…" Gloom instantly replaced all cheeriness. Indeed, while everything was alright in the Digital Universe, nobody could change the fact that the sisters died making it possible. Now the trip felt emptier than ever. That meant only one task remaining.

"C'mon," Kouichi coached, "Let's go mourn them on the back decks." So the group trudged on towards the nearest staircase, their eyes unwittingly darting towards a candy shop. They stopped in more surprise at the sight of two familiar customers: the Ishiwatari sisters! Of course, neither girl returned the glance just yet. Stepping out, Nimiya licked a tiny chocolate ball while Valese contended with huckleberry gummy candy.

"Y'know, Valese, dark chocolate's got a real buttery taste to it."

"Of course. That's the way they make it." Even more surprised, the siblings halted as they made eye contact with the others. "Friends? Is that really you?"

"Never expected to meet you on the ship."

"Yeah, we were thinking the same things," Takuya said. All eight walked back towards the plants to keep the shop doorway open and discuss things privately. "I don't get it. We saw you die before our very eyes."

"Remember seeing a bright flash after Matrixmon crumbled?" Nimiya said, receiving nodding heads for an answer, "Well, it turned time back to the point before the two of us became digidestined. Our D-Tectors are back with Ophanimon, and our Digimon spirits have physical form to enjoy their beautiful friendship with former enemies. And, being true heroes brought us back to life, like gaining a 1-UP in a video game."

"No more scars, either!" Valese added, turning around to show the back of her back. Nimiya followed suit by holding up her right hand.

"That's good to know," Izumi said, "All is well with yer parents, I take it?"

"Yep. While you tended to Kouichi in the hospital, Nimiya and I confronted our parents like we should've done a long time ago. Ever since then, things have looked up. Counseling saved the Ishiwatari family dignity."

"Excellent," Tomoki said, "What say we all go swimming to celebrate?"

"Yeah!" the others chorused.

"Wait a minute," Kouichi remembered, "Two more questions. Firstly, how come you didn't express Fractal Code after turning back into humans on MetalTyrannomon's home?"

"Same reason why Kazemon learned Italian from Izumi," Nimiya answered, "Digimon spirits share characteristics of whomever they possess. Actually, vice versa for us. Those four certain Rookies don't give off Fractal Code when dealt heavy damage, and so neither did we."

"I guess that makes sense," Kouji decided, "Next question: Why didn't yer D-Tectors shatter after the way you hurt Matrixmon and then her digivolution Oburamon?"

"Because you, me, Takuya, and Nimiya all have special D-Tectors that can't be destroyed so easily no matter how corrupt the internal or external forces," Valese added, "At least that's the best **I** can come up with." Shrugging, the kids left the main hall and went outside for soaking wet enjoyment.

Two nights later, Takuya stood all alone above the bridge doing some thinking. Junpei, Tomoki, and the brothers had earlier instructed him to meet there at around 7:30 PM, but they hadn't shown up yet. With everyone's digital duties finished, the other three older boys continued their scheme in getting the gogglehead and Izumi together by importing Valese and Nimiya's help. The sisters had Izumi practice long and hard while the four boys contended with Takuya. Evaluating his feelings even now, memories filled his mind like they did hers.

True, Takuya didn't think much of Izumi's attitude at first. She came off as some bossy individual blinded by ideas that the world always revolved around her only to show a different side later on. But despite the slapping and disagreements, he still admired her rigidity; Izumi really knew where she was going. All of a sudden, the night reminded Takuya of a non-reality memory but a memory nonetheless: his dream date.

_Flashback_

It was the time EmperorGreymon and MagnaGarurumon made their stage debut to fight an empowered Cherubimon. Tomoki, Patamon, Bokomon and Izumi shared offers amongst Kouji and Takuya if they won. The young boy promised a big kiss (A/N: LOL! Awww.); the former angel said he'd make them food; Bokomon claimed he'd knit them matching haramaki; and the only (at least, back then) female digidestined offered a date. Flying towards Cherubimon, inside EmperorGreymon, Takuya dreamt he and Izumi did date in the park. The boy rested on her lap while she sat up against a tree to better support his neck. Slight amnesia accompanied his groaning awakening. "This is..."

"You woke up," Izumi stated.

Still sleepy Takuya shaded his eyes from the bright sunlight and groaned again. "I…?"

"You're half asleep, eh? We can finally have some fun. We're in the middle of our all-day date."

"Oh, yeah. We won."

"You did your best, right, Takuya?"

"Idiots!" Kouji yelled, wildly pursued by everyone else but Kouichi, "Stop that!" At the same time, his twin brother calmly sat on a bench not far away from the laughing future sweethearts.

"Kouji's safe, eh..."

"He doesn't seem tired," Izumi commented, "You did a lot, so why not rest a little more?"

"Yeah, you're right... They seem to be full of energy. I think I'll sleep for a little bit more." As Takuya closed his eyes again, an explosion ruined both the nap and the moment.

_End Flashback_

Takuya had to giggle himself at another memory more silly than falling down that hole while searching out Tomoki and Junpei: nearly informing Izumi he liked her as more than a friend while searching for that key in Ophanimon's castle. Now the pair's personal moment of truth was finally at hand. The guys are right, he thought while adjusting his hat and goggles, I'm finding Izumi and telling her my feelings if it's the last thing I ever do. But he jolted at turning around and suddenly meeting the other boys face to face. "Nyah-ah!"

"Hey, Takuya," Tomoki greeted, "No need to be so jumpy."

"Right. What took you so long?"

"Nothing much," Junpei replied, "C'mon, let's go eat."

"Eat?"

"Yeah."

"You mean eat, as in all of us together?"

"Obviously," Kouichi added.

"What of mine and Izumi's date?"

"Worry about that later," Kouji said, "C'mon, the girls are waiting." Takuya's thoughts swam while walking down off the bridge and towards a certain restaurant. The brothers and Junpei chose a simple one open late hours and offering complimentary meals. Time appeared to have passed by pretty quickly as the boys joined Nimiya, Valese, and Izumi at the door. Few other faces crowded the restaurant. Little else stirred besides the kids gathering up food and beverages. But seating arrangements typically unleashed the plan's full force.

"If you don't mind, the rest of us are just gonna feast outside," Nimiya informed, "Come along, Valese. Tomoki." The trio then chose a table for six far enough to give Takuya and Izumi privacy but right in front of the restaurant.

"Izumi, like Kouji said before, Takuya's got something ta tell you," Junpei concluded before he and the brothers joined the others. Almost paralyzed with nervousness, the pair looked around for a decent enough table to sit at and instantly decided on one next to a window. Both needed to eat first in order to gain speaking confidence. Confessions began halfway through the meal.

"So, Takuya. You wanted to tell me something?" Please say you feel the same, she thought.

"Oh yeah. Izumi, remember that one night in Ophanimon's castle, when it was just the two of us downstairs?"

"Without a doubt. Who could forget?"

"Well, I almost lied to you back then."

"Whadda you mean?"

"Alright, so I wouldn't call it a lie. I mean I did like you as more than a friend and still do. Let's face it: When we first met on that Trailmon, you became the first girl to actually put me in a trance. Whatever it is, you've got something a boy has to admire. I just wasn't ready to admit it back then. Of course, I understand if you don't feel the same way."

Izumi stared somewhat wide-eyed for ten seconds before surprising Takuya. Some of his lines sounded peculiarly familiar. "Well, Takuya, I can only say how shocked I am right now."

"Why? Don't tell me I offended you."

"Hardly. Those're the same words and things I've thought about you. Yeah, I didn't understand it myself at first, but I do feel the same way."

"You mean it?"

"Uh huh. In fact, I'm also jealous that you got up enough guts to make a premature confession while I stayed silent all this time."

"Eh, that's okay." Glancing out the window, the pair exchanged thumbs-up with the other six. Kouji, Junpei, Tomoki, Kouichi, Valese, and Nimiya had a good idea of their success whether or not they heard everything. Takuya and Izumi then immediately faced each other again, forgetting about the rest of the world. "So now that we've confessed, where's that currently leave us?"

"I think it'll work out just fine. Who knows, maybe we'll also be able to go on a date sometime during this vacation or when we get home."

"This is a date. Er, if you want it to be." Seeing Takuya's bright face, Izumi knew that it was. The pair lifted up their glasses of orange juice for a toast and drank away.

"Yeah. You're absolutely right."

The End


End file.
